Dance with the Devil
by allee-she-sha
Summary: Noodle is released from Hell with a mission. How do you save someone when the one that needs saving the most is yourself?
1. And so it begins

**Ho'kay my dears... this is the first part of my glorious rewrite. Those of you who have made it this far should recognize a majority of the story at this point, and I apologize if that annoys you. BUT! There are some parts that have changed so... go ahead and read it. :)**

**Disclaimer.**

Noodle fell to the rocky ground. Her jaw throbbed and stung. She took a deep breath and pushed herself up. She sat crouched in a dark, cavernous place. It was set up like a parlour. There was the faint sound of screams echoing in the air but Noodle ignored this. She was used to the sound of pain and suffering nowadays. She glared up at the shadowy figure looming over her head. Through gritted teeth, she spat out a mouthful of blood.

"Why are you keeping me here? The deal is done, four years was our agreement." The figure smiled gently and shook his head.

"Noodle, dear. Didn't your mummy ever tell you not to make deals with the devil?" Noodle looked down again and closed her eyes. This wasn't fair. She wiped the side of her mouth, removing the rest of the blood from where the figure had struck her.

"You didn't have to hit me." The figure chuckled and turned away, flexing the wrist of the arm he had struck her with.

"Maybe now you will learn, my dear. Question me again, and you will get hurt far worse. You're just lucky I didn't feel the need to punish your little friends." Noodle's hands clenched into the scorched earth. The man was unperturbed by this and casually sorted through a sizable stack of letters lying on a nearby writing desk.

"You promised to leave them alone…" The man chuckled again and looked up at Noodle.

"Oh my dear, so naive. Do you forget the power I hold in my very fist?" Noodle didn't answer, just glared at him from her place on the ground. "Remember, girl. I own you now. Until further notice, your soul is mine." He smiled cruelly. "And the sooner you learn that, the better." His finger twitched and Noodle felt herself being forced to stand. She fought, she always fought, but she always had to give in eventually. When she was standing, the shadowy man turned her around and sent her out the door.

"Ta ta, dear. You know I always enjoy our little chats." Noodle grimaced as she was forced out of the door by her own legs. They didn't stop until she was at the door of her prison cell. Her legs gracelessly dumped her onto the bed and she was in control once again. She shook off the horrible feeling being controlled by the Devil always gave her and sat on the bed. Noodle stared at the opposite wall with disinterest. She had hoped that she would never have to see this place again. Her meeting with the Devil, himself, hadn't gone as she had hoped. She had so looked forward to this day. The day when she would be released from this place. She could finally go home and be with her friends. Noodle buried her head in her arms. She may never see them again. For some reason or another, that terrible man was refusing to let her go. She had fulfilled her end of the deal, she had stayed here for four years, however unwillingly. Even the Devil should be tied to making good on bargains. She sniffed. He had even hit her. She hated when he hit her. Her face still bore the mark of her first argument with the shadowy man. Her lip had stopped bleeding now, a fact that pleased Noodle greatly. The demons seemed to congregate at the scent of fresh blood. They seemed to enjoy the taste of Noodle's blood even more.

Noodle curled her legs up underneath her and wrapped her arms around her legs. The walls of her cell were closing in again, suffocating her. When she had first arrived here, the suffocating feeling sent her into a panic, hurling her to the door of her cell, begging to be let out. It had gotten… better since then. She no longer had an episode when she felt trapped. By this point, Noodle welcomed the closing walls. They were, in some form, a comforting hug. She closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep, hugging her legs to her body.

Noodle dreamed. She dreamed of flying again. She dreamed of soaring over the heavens and dancing in the clouds. Noodle had this dream often here. The first time the dream had occurred, Noodle had been crushed to find it wasn't real when she woke up. She had gotten used to the dejected feeling that courses through her when she woke up, or was rudely awoken, and was glad that she got to enjoy a bit of light, if only in her head. Her dream-self turned over and let the sun play across her face. She looked over and saw a small figure floating beside her. Her monkey! She smiled at the small primate and reached out her hand to join his. Together, the floated over the clouds and ignored the turmoil beneath them. She heard a faint yelling from below. Someone was calling her name. Noodle searched the ground below her to find its source. She looked up at her friend in confusion, but was shocked to find him gone. She looked back down at the earth and screamed as she fell from the highest cloud. Down, she plummeted towards the hard surface below, screaming as she went. Just before she hit the ground, she woke.

A tapping noise on the bars of the cell woke her up and alerted Noodle that she was not alone. She looked up and scrubbed at her eyes, uninterested. One of the head demons stood waiting for her, robes billowing around his feet. She untangled herself and edged towards the mouth of the cell, where an orange light was pouring in. The demon opened her cell door and beckoned her forward with a long, pointed finger. Noodle was unsurprised that she was leaving her cell again so quickly. The Devil often liked to beckon her. Sometimes just to gloat about her fate and other times to make her watch him torture poor souls. The worst was when he started hitting ghost-like figures of her friends. She followed behind the demon as he twisted down hallways that seemed to emanate red light. He was tall, nearly rivaling the height of 2D. Noodle bit her lip at that thought. The demon stopped in front of a set of ornate doors, Noodle had never seen this set of doors before. The demon rapped six times and left the girl behind. A deep, but pleasant voice issued from behind the door.

"Come in, Noodle, dear." Noodle shivered. She still couldn't get used to Satan calling her 'dear'. She didn't like it. She entered the room. This room was set up like a lounge, with a large desk occupying the center. Satan seemed to have a liking for desks as he had one in nearly every room. 'Probably just to put his feet up' Noodle thought viciously. To confirm her thoughts, the Devil, himself had his feet propped up on the desk in front of him. He smiled at her when he looked up.

"Did you have a nice sleep, Noodle?" Noodle resisted the urge to roll her eyes, she had gotten a scar on her back for that move two years back.

"What do you need?" The man's expression turned stern.

"Tone, young lady. I've been thinking… about our conversation last night. And I suppose that I did promise that I would release you after four years, yes? That was our deal?" Noodle nodded cautiously. Originally, the Devil had been after Murdoc's soul and had wanted to use Noodle as bait to lure the bassist to Hell. Noodle was quick to protest this and cut a deal with Satan; four years of Noodle residing in Hell in exchange for the Devil forgiving Murdoc's debt. If she was hearing correctly… was he rethinking her prolonged imprisonment? The man took his feet off of the desk and leaned his arms on the surface. "That means that it's time to cut you a new deal, my dear." Noodle's face shifted slightly.

"A… _new_ deal?" Satan threw his arms out to the side.

"Just call me FDR, baby." He laughed at his own joke. The chorus of demons surrounding the room echoed his laughter. Noodle did not. "Anyway, it has come to my attention that a certain someone is in trouble… someone you know." Noodle looked up very fast. What had Murdoc done now?

"Did he default on his debt again?" Satan chuckled at her.

"It's not him this time, surprisingly. It's one of your other friends."

"… Which one?" She asked, evenly. If Russel or 2D were in trouble, she would have sold her soul a million times over to protect them. If she betrayed too much emotion, Satan could weigh the deal on his side. The man smirked.

"It seems our friend… a Mr. Stuart Pot? Yes, Mr. Pot has taken to the nasty habit of popping one too many pills." Noodle's heart leapt in terror when 2D's name slid from the man's mouth. If 2D was in trouble… Satan had his eye on capturing 2D next. Her mind quickly ran through scenarios. What had the singer done to provoke the Devil and could he be stopped? Noodle was then confused. 2D had been on painkillers for quite some time now, why was he in trouble now? Noodle directed that question at the man.

"The trouble is… he's mixing them… and in large quantities. His heart can't hold out much longer. In short, he's dying." Noodle's heart broke. The poor singer had never taken good care of himself. She wanted very badly to see him, but not like this. Noodle couldn't imagine what could have happened to the singer to drive him this close to the edge. And what hurt more was that she couldn't go get him while trapped here. She stared at her feet, tears streaming silently down her cheeks.

"So, what do you want me to do about it?" The man gave her a warning glance before turning around and looking into the fireplace while answering.

"You've got to stop him, obviously! He would gladly listen to you, yes?" Noodle looked up, shocked. Stop him? How could she?

"And why would you want me to do that? I thought you were all for people turning over." Satan turned around with a sadistic grin on his face.

"A soul is a soul, dear Noodle. Suicide victims don't go through me. That's someone else's department." Noodle felt the tears start anew. Suicide was what it was, it was hard to hear.

"Where do they go?"

"Not here… not there either," he pointed up with a long finger, "just… on." He waved his hand ambiguously. Noodle's fist clenched.

"I wouldn't want him here, either. If this is where he would end up anyway, maybe this other place is better." Satan shook his head at the girl piteously.

"There's still a chance for him though, my dear. He could go to… that place… or he could end up here. It's all up in the air. I would just hate to see his soul dissipate into the wind, though. Such a waste." Noodle glared back at the ground again. There was still a chance she could save 2D. Save him from this and whatever there was to come. The singer would not survive here in Hell. It would crush him like a bug. Without bothering to look up, she asked,

"How long do I have?" The Devil smirked at her.

"A few days still. His heart can hold out until Thursday at the latest."

"And how am I supposed to do anything? Sounds like he's been at it for a while." Satan sighed and reached in his breast pocket. He extracted a small phial filled with a bright blue liquid.

"This should help. It'll flush out his system pretty well. Fair warning, though. It will be pretty messy." Noodle nodded and took the small phial. Finally, she looked up at the Devil.

"Do you know why he's been taking so many pills?" Satan looked at her curiously.

"It's hard to say. I suppose you'd have to talk to him to find out. Are you accepting my orders?"

"I suppose I have to. I can't just let him die, can I?" Noodle pocketed the phial and crossed her arms. Satan shrugged.

"I suppose you _could_… but that's not very nice, is it?" The Devil taunted her. He opened a book on his desk and started leafing through it.

"How exactly do you plan on me getting there to save him? I suppose I'm expected to walk out of here?" Satan looked up at her with a dangerous smirk.

"It hasn't worked for anyone yet, my dear. It won't work for you. Don't worry, it's all been arranged. My goodness, you have a bad attitude, don't you?" Noodle opened her mouth to argue, but she didn't get the chance. Satan outstretched his arm and whispered under his breath. Gray smoke hurtled towards Noodle. She was unceremoniously knocked unconscious before she hit the ground.

**Here I am, thrusting my soul out for your trampling pleasure. If you would review, that would be just fantastic.**


	2. Decisions

**Aaaaaaand because I was so inconveniencing by making you read this again... I shall humor you by uploading another chapter... I may do a third... hang on.**

**Disclaimer.**

Satan casually sat back against his desk after making the girl disappear. Noodle was a nice girl, one of the nicest he'd seen in a while. He felt sort of bad for what he'd done to her. He smirked, it could also have been indigestion, he couldn't tell anymore. A demon slowly ghosted forward. In his hands, he held a file. The Devil, ignoring the demon, turned back and picked up an invoice for the new carpet in the foyer. He scanned the cover of it, looking for anything out of place. A low voice tentatively spoke,

"Sir…?" Satan looked up over the top of the file. "I have… Mr. Pot's file here." The Devil quirked a brow.

"Yes… and?" The unfortunate demon stuttered.

"I was just looking it over… and I- I think you've made a- a…" Satan grinned, showing a mouthful of pointy teeth.

"You think I've made a mistake in sending the girl to fetch the blue-haired twat?" The demon nodded hesitantly. The Devil motioned for the demon to continue while starting to read over the invoice again.

"I-it's just that… this boy… he isn't on _any_ painkillers. His records show that he stopped using them… altogether." Satan didn't look up from his paper as he chuckled and shook his head.

"That doesn't matter, my friend. All I needed was to get her up there with those… monkey-people, or whatever they call themselves. I really could care less about the boy." The demon looked up, startled.

"So, why send her at all?" Satan rolled his eyes.

"You foolish thing, my deal with her was up. I intend to keep her. Her soul is as good as any one of those… up there. If I can get her to betray her friends and turn… I win. The equilibrium of the world will be thrown out of balance with such an upheaval." The demon nodded, this he understood. The secret to the continued "peace on earth" was a balance of good and evil souls. This girl's soul must be enough to tip the scales in either direction.

"How do you plan to turn her?" Satan cracked his knuckles.

"Patience, you pathetic fool. I have my ways."

"But, you made it sound like the boy was really in trouble…" The Devil snorted humorlessly.

"Yes, I lied to the girl. Please try to contain your shock." The demon jumped when Satan swung his head in the demon's direction to give him a look, "Now, are you finished badgering me?" The demon opened his mouth to say more, but quickly snapped it shut and backed away, bowing. Before he could get back to his place in line, a flare of magma encased his form… and he was no more. Satan's eyes stopped glowing and he sighed and shook his head.

"It is… so hard to find good help these days."

...

Noodle groaned as she sat up, keeping her eyes closed. She felt very cold in the light breeze. Her breathing stopped. There were _no_ breezes in Hell. She slowly opened her eyes. Where was she? She faintly recognized the outline of a slide and a set of swings. A playground? Why the hell was she on a playground? Satan must have transported her here himself. Noodle scrubbed at her eye with the heel of her hand. She felt like death and probably looked worse. Shakily she stood up. She moved her limbs and checked to see if anything was broken. Luckily, she seemed fine. Nothing around her seemed to show any sign of her sudden appearance. No scorch marks on the grass, no playground equipment in pieces. She took a step forward and nearly fell over. The ground was squishy and soft, a surface she was not used to after being trapped in the hot rocky surroundings that was Hell. Righting herself, she started forward again. She made it to the street and squinted at the street signs, trying to make out an address that might tell her where she was. The streetlight suddenly flicked on and shone on a sign on the ground.

Essex- 2 miles

Noodle nearly jumped in glee. Essex, she wasn't far from home at all! She clumsily ran toward the sign and was content to just stare at it for a moment. The demons in Hell used a special language to communicate and write in. Noodle had picked up bits and pieces of the strange tongue on her… visit. It was nice to see actual English and be able to fully understand what the sign was trying to convey.

Police sirens wailed on another street, sending Noodle into a panic. She supposed that showing up out of the dark looking like she had been dragged through an alley and beaten up wouldn't look too good. She started off in the direction the sign pointed her to in a clumsy run, eager for the first taste of home.

When she stumbled into the heart of Essex, it was around two in the morning. Nothing was open and the little houses were dark and sealed up for the night. It had begun to rain, which made Noodle shiver in her holey and threadbare clothes. She really needed to be on the other side of Essex, not here. A few drunks swaggered by on the sidewalk and called out to her. She rolled her eyes and flipped them off. She had been violated too many times in Hell to muster up any actual fear and knew three different ways to throw an offender off in a matter of seconds. If anything, her time underground had been one hell of a learning experience, pun intended. A light up ahead proved to be a small hotel. She ran inside to escape the bitter chill and took a minute to warm up. The night manager peered over his desk at the sodden young woman who looked like she had been living in the forest for years. He cleared his throat loudly and snapped his fingers to get her attention.

Noodle froze at the sound of being snapped at and her spine stood erect. She turned her head and hit the man with a stare enough to send him reeling a few steps back. She slowly turned and strutted up to the desk, hands on her hips. The manager drew in a breath as he noted the many scars and burns that occupied her face, as well as the large bruise that covered her right eye. She glared at him, condescendingly. She definitely hadn't lost her "social skills" then. She stood tall and spoke with her chin up, exuding confidence and superiority.

"I need a room for tonight." The unfortunate manager blinked at her tone and fumbled on his keyboard for the reservation program on his computer.

"Y- yes, madam. Room or suite?"

"Surprise me." The man nodded, heads of sweat glistening on his brow. She stared uncertainly around the lobby, a random guest was gawking at her. She turned around again when the manager cleared his throat again.

"I assume you'll be paying with a credit card, then?" Noodle but her lip and nodded. She recited the number of the last credit card she had. She breathed a sigh of relief when the computer accepted the number without issue. She took the key that was offered to her and she set up the sweeping staircase to her right, the man at the counter glaring at her from behind.

The suite Noodle was given was on the second to top floor. It had a small balcony overlooking the private pond below and a large jacuzzi in the center of the bathroom floor. She walked around the room, marveling at how luxurious her current surroundings were in comparison to her modest if not terrible lodgings in Hell. She threw herself on the bed and sank into its depths. She grabbed the remote and after a moment of fiddling, managed to turn the stereo on and switch on the radio. She heaved herself off the bed again, not wanting to lie still. An old White Stripes song finished its riff and the DJ took the air once more. Noodle appreciated the mindless chatter and a short interview with Emma Watson and wandered around the room, touching the soft fabrics. She had just gotten back from getting a snack from the 24 hour continental breakfast bar downstairs when the DJ mentioned a news story that made her pause with a folded up waffle half-way to her mouth.

"- and, our own Gorillaz is set to release their third studio album tomorrow, set your alarms early, duckies, those things will sell like hotcakes!" The DJ trailed off as Noodle froze, ignoring the rest of the headlines. It couldn't be true, could it? A THIRD album? She forgot the remote and ran to the stereo to switch it off. She turned to the television and punched the power button viciously, the waffle between her teeth.

She quickly found the French equivalent of MTV and scanned the news stories at the bottom. Thankfully, they were in English and didn't require Noodle to translate. Noodle waited three agonizingly long minutes as the news stories at the bottom scrolled by.

'BRITISH ROCK BAND GORILLAZ SET TO RELEASE THIRD STUDIO ALBUM TOMORROW' She quickly dropped the waffle and folded herself in front of the television. With her mouth hanging open, she waited for the story to scroll across again. She sat on the floor for several hours, watching the words scroll by, but not quite understanding them. New album? But… Gorillaz didn't have a guitarist, did they? She dropped her head into her hands. They had replaced her. She had nothing now. Noodle wondered who the lucky son of a bitch was. Was it another girl? Was she playing video games with 2D? Was she being passed a cigarette in secret from Murdoc when Russel wasn't watching? Her heart throbbed. What if that swine, Paula had come back? How dare they? How dare they do anything less than try to find her all these years? They were supposed to be her family and this was how they treated her? Noodle felt sick. She felt blindly for the bed and sank into its depths. She wrapped the cover around her and fell asleep with the television still on.

Noodle awoke the next morning with a heavy heart. She groped for the remote on the floor where it had fallen and switched the glowing box off. She glanced at the alarm clock on the bedside table, it read 7:34. A reasonable time to be up. Noodle mechanically threw the covers off and raked her fingers through her hair in lieu of a proper brush. She picked up the remains of the waffle and deposited it in the garbage on her way out the door and down the stairs.

As she walked past the front desk, she flipped her key on the tabletop without a word. The manager from the previous night stared at her retreating form as she stuck her hands in her pockets and casually strolled out of the double doors. Out in the blinding sunshine, Noodle took a good look at where she was. She didn't quite recognize this part of the city but figured she couldn't be that far away. She felt lucky to have been deposited somewhere close enough to her desired destination. This was Monday here, according to last night's MTV, she should have more than enough time to get to Kong and try to pull 2D out of his drug-induced stupor. She fingered the glass phial in her pocket. Noodle figured she could trust the sunstance to save 2D. 'A soul is a soul' the Devil had said. For once, Noodle trusted Satan NOT to kill the singer. It was strange, this sense of trust. The one being nearly every fable and moral lesson told her not to rely on, she had to in order to save one of the people she cared for most in the world. She wandered the streets, looking for a trolley that could take her to Kong when a few teenaged boys and girl passed her. Snatches of the conversation could be heard.

"-best one yet, I've heard! It's got that new one too!" A boy shouted to his friends.

"Which one's that!" A girl asked breathlessly. Noodle didn't hear the rest. The group hurried into a shop that had a large sign reading 'Mr. Jack's Music Emporium'. Noodle gazed up at the sign. She remembered the scrolling news story from last night. Should she buy the damned CD to see what it was about? She could tell everyone she was buying it to see how awful the band was without her. Noodle glanced around nervously. What if someone recognized her? She really didn't fancy getting trapped in a mob right now. She caught her reflection in a nearby window. Her hair and bangs had grown long. She had grown a few inches and lost the little baby fat she had. She had lost pretty much all of the fat in her body, actually. She could see her ribs poking out through the shirt and her collarbones made angry ridges in her chest. Noodle grinned. If she could hardly recognize herself, certainly no one else could, either. She walked into the music store, previous intentions forgotten.

The store was lined with shelves, all packed with music. Noodle marveled at the selection and guessed they had just about every band known to man. A swarm of punky-looking teenagers and young adults was assaulting the front counter, all waving money and demanding… something. Noodle couldn't hear above the din. A beefy youth knocked into her and pushed her into the throng. While scrambling to try and get out, she spotted the object of desire for the crowd.

Plastic Beach. Noodle saw the familiar script designating Gorillaz as the artist. She was caught between joy that all these people were here for her band… and despair that she had not been a part of the current CD. With newfound strength, she elbowed her way to the front of the crowd and snatched a copy of the CD up from the display. She hid it under her arm and snuck away to a quiet corner of the shop. When the crowd had finally passed, she brought it up to the very battered looking cashier. Noodle kept her head down as she handed the cashier a slip of paper with her card number on it. The poor boy scanned the item and tried to make small talk.

"Can't believe you actually got a copy. Been selling like mad, these." Noodle nodded politely but stayed silent and kept her head down. He gawked a bit at her signature and gawked even more when he got a look at her face.

"'Ey… I know you… oi, what happened to your face?" Noodle sighed and grabbed the CD and her receipt, not having the patience to tell the insolent boy her story.

Outside, Noodle held the album in the sun. It was a beautiful cover picture. A strange island poked out of the sea with a flaming sky background. Noodle spotted trash lying around the edges of the island. Noodle wondered how the inspiration for this particular album came about. She flipped the album over and studied the back. She rolled her eyes a Murdoc standing without a shirt and grinned slightly at 2D's expression. When she saw the third figure, she froze. She saw… herself. Noodle cocked her head to the right. What was she wearing? Noodle was certain she didn't own anything like what the girl who looked an awful lot like her was wearing. She studied the picture a bit harder and noticed the bullet hole in her head. She panicked. What kind of sick joke was this? To even pretend for Noodle to have been shot… what were they playing at? And where WERE they? She had never seen this island before, we're they on vacation? Without her?

A loud ringing filled the air, yanking Noodle back into the present. The nearby clock tower had rung, announcing the time as 9:00. Noodle tore herself away from the album and hurried down the street, she needed to get to a computer.

A small internet cafe served her purpose. Noodle sat down at the terminal farthest from the door and booted up the Internet. She typed in 'Gorillaz' when the French version of Wikipedia appeared. She scrolled through the band's bios and discography until she came to the page for Plastic Beach. The album cover appeared at the top of the page and Noodle scrolled through, looking for an explanation. She found herself fighting tears as she read what had become of her beloved friends after she left. Apparently, Russel was missing and 2D had been kidnapped (by Murdoc, no less) and dragged to an island to record the new album. Not so much a vacation it seemed, more like Murdoc fleeing the country after a spot of trouble. She read on… and clapped a hand to her mouth in shock.

"The cyborg Noodle, which was created out of the guitarist's DNA, will be covering guitars and synth in light of the former guitarist's disappearance after the El Mañana shoot." Noodle read the sentence over and over again… 'Cyborg'. They had created a _cyborg_ to replace her. Who's brilliant idea was this? Noodle growled.

"Murdoc…" Noodle stood up and more or less stomped out of the cafe. She had to get to a boat.

**Alright, let's see those comments!**


	3. Arrival

**Hello, hello to everyone! I'm just going to leave this entirely uninteresting new chapter here and walk away nonchalantly... I hope no one feels the need to read it...**

Noodle fumed on the deck of her rented boat. If she had known her bandmates were a two-day journey away, she would have asked to have been dumped closer to the sea and not the middle of England. Her encounter with the hotel manager and the clerk had given her the impulse to hide her marred face behind a mask to avoid questions. It was also proving very useful for hiding her roiling emotions. How dare her band replace her so quickly? In truth, she didn't know how long the cyborg had been in commission, but she knew she didn't like it. Had they just forgotten her? She couldn't believe the band would put another album out without her. What had been going through Murdoc's head? Noodle snorted, she actually knew what might have been going on in the bassist's head when he commissioned another album. She had heard the story many times when the Satanic man was drunk and wallowing in his pathetic inebriety. She scolded herself for jumping to conclusions.

Many years before Noodle had joined the Gorillaz, or even had been born for that matter, Murdoc had been a sullen young man in East London. His father wasn't the best provider so the young man turned to gangs and drugs. Once, out on a knicking spree, the young Murdoc was left by his gang brothers in the music shop they had previously cased in order for them to bring a truck around. Out of sheer curiosity, he picked up a bass and a legend was born. The next few years passed with Murdoc attempting to get in every band he could with little success. He was wandering the streets in a shady part of town, cursing his luck, when he met a shadowy man claiming that "Satan was the light". Desperate for help from wherever he could find it, he jumped into the world of Satanism. He soon struck a deal with the Devil that Satan would make his band famous in exchange for half of whatever profits he had made that year. Murdoc impulsively agreed and shook hands with the Devil. However, years would prove, Murdoc was not a man of his word…

The thin man she had found to look after the kitchen wandered by with a tray. She looked around when he cleared his throat politely.

"Lemonade, madam?" Noodle reached for the glass, thanking the skinny, balding man. He bowed and backed off, leaving Noodle alone once again. Noodle twirled the straw, not really interested in drinking it. What if her beloved bandmates actually _had_ gone and forgot her? Would she find a new guitarist strumming along to Feel Good Inc? Noodle swallowed thickly. Would she find a new female guitarist with her arm wrapped lovingly around 2D's waist? Would she find him already dead, his heart already given out? Noodle shook her head, clearing those thoughts away, she shouldn't scare herself like that. The singer would be okay is she got there in time. Not that she deserved him, anyway. Noodle glanced down into the waves below. She really didn't care much for being out in open water. She felt very much alone out here, so isolated. Noodle gripped the railing a bit tighter and pulled her mask over her eyes. The sooner they got to this blasted island, the better. Noodle was sick and tired of her treacherous thoughts pushing her around. As if to rebuke her thought, a wave leapt at her hand, causing Noodle to yelp and scurry to her room.

Upon arriving, Noodle realized she really didn't know what to do with herself. She had packed a small knapsack before she left and her newly purchased guitar. The glass phial was tucked safely away in a pocket on the very interior of the bag. She still had the CD as well. However, she had yet to listen to it as she had forgotten to bring a computer. Noodle sat primly on her bed, took out the CD again and turned it over in her hands. 2D looked so happy in this picture. His eyes were the usual pleasant onyx instead of the nervous white that was represented on the inside cover. A cigarette dangled from his smiling lips. Noodle grinned wryly. Her brief time in the Maldives had allowed for some… interesting experiences. She had tried smoking, she hadn't liked it much, but she was still amazed at how grown up she had become in her time away. She couldn't wait until Russel discovered the small tattoo on her back above the waistband of her pants. She smirked as she recalled the incident at the shabby tattoo parlor. She had simply given the tattoo artist a picture of what she wanted, she had refused to tell him what the Japanese characters meant. He had been wary, having gotten a lot of grief over misspelled tattoos in foreign languages, but went ahead and hoped she knew what she was doing. Noodle absently fingered the skin on her wrist and marveled sadly at how grown up a few months, or years, could make someone.

The butler's running feet could be heard down the hallway. He suddenly burst through the door. A panicked expression occupied his visage.

"Madam! The ship is under attack from pirates! I've been sent to escort you to the lifeboats!" Noodle's face set into a frown. She ground her teeth and mentally swore at whoever the poor bastard was that was going to delay her in reaching 2D. Noodle stood and walked to the desk on the side of her room.

"Madam?" Noodle clicked the lock on the briefcase and popped the lid open. A tommy gun waited for her, ready to be assembled. "Oh dear-" Noodle pushed past the butler on her way out the door, ignoring his stuttering. She mentally swore and cursed the pirates' mother and anything else she could think of with foul language to rival even Murdoc. Once on deck, she caught a glimpse of her attackers. Noodle didn't recognize the pilots or their crafts. She ran to the edge of the deck and raised her gun. With clenched teeth, she took a position and started firing. The planes flew closer and closer. Noodle took a good look at the side of the plane as it flew near her, almost hitting her. A skull and crossbones? Strange for a plane. Noodle continued firing and managed to hit one of the pilots. The man twisted in pain and slumped in his seat. His plane landed in the water. Noodle gave a silent cheer of victory before having her attention yanked back to the other plane. She gasped and stepped back as the second plane dropped a large bomb, very much like the one she saw briefly when she was going down during El Mañana. Who were these people? Noodle screwed her eyes shut as the bomb plowed into the deck. She was thrown back with the force of the explosion and faintly heard what should have been a deafening explosion as she was plunged into the sea. She struggled to open her eyes and panicked when she saw where she was. She was going to die here… in the middle of the ocean if she didn't get moving. Noodle looked down into the murky depths and gasped at what she saw, a trail of bubbles leading up from her mouth.

2D's lifeless form stared at her. His eyes blank and his mouth slack. He was dead.

Noodle swung her head viciously from side to side. It wasn't real. It couldn't be real. She kicked upwards furiously until her head broke the surface. She spotted a conveniently placed life raft and hauled herself onto it. It must have unfurled and floated away during the impact. She laid back, exhausted. Suddenly, she sat up, looking around her in a panic. Where was her knapsack? The phial was her only hope. She spotted it floating a few meters away. She used her hands to paddle the raft towards the floating mass of cloth and hauled it up. She cradled the bag to her chest and laid back down. When she found the strength to sit up, she gasped. A strange shape poked out of the sea, pink in color. Noodle was here. Noodle was staring at Plastic Beach.

Noodle was lying on her back and staring up at the sky. Clouds wandered by at an incredibly slow pace, making her wonder how much time was passing. The island was in sight, yet so far away. 'I am a failure. I could not save my best friend in the world because I got within two miles of his island. A bird circled overhead, a black dot in the sky. Noodle squinted, it kind of resembled Cortez, Murdoc's bird. Noodle felt a shudder rip through the water underneath her. She panicked and looked over the side, fearing she would be tossed into the water. She was raised high above the sea, higher than waves can go. She scrambled to the center of the raft, her heart thumping painfully and not daring to look down. What the hell was going on? A thunderous sound rang out.

"Noodle-girl… is that you?" Noodle blinked. No- it… it couldn't be! She threw herself to the edge of the raft and peered down.

"Russel-sama? It is me!" Noodle felt the raft lift again as a massive brown hand plucked her off of the giant's head and cradled her in his palm. She looked up into the large white orbs that meant safety and family to her. He grinned down at her.

"Girl, I've missed you. Where you been all these years?" Noodle grinned wryly. Russel could see it under the edge of her mask.

"Hell and back, Russel-sama." Russel nodded thoughtfully.

"I'd love to hear the story." Noodle hesitated, she knew Russel would be upset, anyone would who cared about her would have.

"Maybe later, we- er… need to get to the island, yes?" Noodle couldn't wait any longer, 2D was within reach again! Russel smiled and went to place Noodle back on his head.

"Stop!" Noodle cried out, "I am afraid that I might fall up there." Russel nodded again and thought.

"I have an idea. Don't worry baby girl, I'll be extra careful not to swallow you…" Noodle was confused until Russel scooped her up and opened his mouth. She grimaced but scooped up her bag and went anyway.

Noodle had never really thought about how dark it could be in someone's mouth until she was trapped in one. She heard a lot of noise and yelling outside, but couldn't tell what the problem was. She huddled herself together. She couldn't believe how close she was to seeing her friends… how would they react? Would they be happy or angry? Would she happen upon the burial of her best friend? She shook her head, this was now Wednesday morning, she was just scraping by the time limit, but she should still be able to save him. She didn't know exactly how Satan's phial was supposed to work, but prayed to whoever was listening that it did.

The gentle rocking motion that came with Russel's swimming was peaceful. Noodle was disgusted by it, but felt comfortable enough to lie back. For all the time she had spent on the raft just lying there, she felt exhausted. Noodle curled her legs to her chest and allowed her eyes to drift shut.

When Noodle awoke, she was in a bright place. Her hand automatically flew up to stop the glare, but she slowly realized… she could see in the blinding brightness. How strange. She looked around. There didn't seem to be anything around her besides the endless white. Was she in Antarctica? She looked down at herself and was mildly surprised to find herself wearing a simple white t-shirt and white capris, not unlike the outfit she had worn in her DARE video. So… not Antarctica, then. She walked forward a few steps before a voice from behind silenced her.

"Do you know where you are, child?" She turned but didn't see anyone.

"Who's there?"

"Why, it is me, dear child." She raised an eyebrow. She didn't recognize the voice, but the endearment caught her attention. The only one who called her "dear" anything was…

"Satan?" A chuckle resounded from around.

"Do you know why you are here, Noodle?" She shrugged and shook her head, "Look there." She was about to open her mouth and ask what exactly she was supposed to be looking for, but a square opened in the floor, silencing her. She timidly toed up to the edge and peered down. A sandy beach stretched out below her. Water was gently lapping at the shore and a pleasant breeze ruffled the sparse palm trees. A shape was laid awkwardly near the shore. Noodle got on her hands and knees and looked harder. Like a scene from a movie, the square began to zoom closer to the beach. Noodle's eyes, previously squinted in concentration, began to get wider as she got a better look at the figure sprawled on the beach. A flash of blue eliminated any other possibility as to who the figure was. 2D lay on the beach, face down, with his limbs contorted at odd angles around him. Noodle drew back and clapped a hand to her mouth.

"What's wrong with him? Can't we help him?" The voice cackled then, morphing into one Noodle was familiar with. The undeniable smooth and high pitch of Satan's voice surrounded Noodle.

"It's a shame he had to go. You nearly made it…"

"Noooo!" Noodle's eyes flew open, chest heaving. If she truly believed she would only find 2D's body, she wouldn't survive. Suddenly, a sliver of light appeared at the front of the cave-like structure. Russel was opening his mouth! She scrambled up. A palm was waiting for her to step out on. Tentatively, she put a foot out and gracefully followed through. The sunlight blinded her, even through her mask, and she shielded her eyes. As she was lowered to the ground, she heard low gasps of surprise. When she was finally able to open her eyes again, she was on the plastic shore. Two people were standing on the beach. One was holding a shotgun and the other, a small hand rifle. Noodle barely noticed the lump of twisted metal lying a few feet away, or the multiple forms that looked awfully like bodies scattered about. Murdoc stood gaping at her, a little more gray around his hairline than she remembered. Noodle caught her breath as she recognized who was standing next to him. 2D stood in all his glory, gangly and tall as ever, wearing his own mask, a clown, on top of his head. He wasn't passed out, face down on the beach, he was ALIVE. She took a wobbly step towards the pair. 2D reached out for her first. Noodle gripped his t-shirt tightly and pulled him to her. She reveled in the fact that she could hold him in her arms and could feel his heartbeat fluttering wildly through his t-shirt. They stood in a close embrace for a few minutes. His hand came up to stroke her hair.

"I- I fought yew were dead, love." Noodle felt tears run down her cheeks at his voice. She pulled back and took his face in her hands. She ran her fingers over his cheeks and nose, skimmed over his lips, and rested around his neck. She couldn't believe she was really standing here with him. He smiled and colored slightly. Murdoc gruffly patted the top of her head and strolled over to address Russel.

"Where yeh been, Lards? An' why are you so massive?" Russel frowned down at the green-skinned man.

"Man, don't mess wit me. I still gotta bone teh pick with yeh about tha' whole Plastic Beach thing." Murdoc shuffled his feet and chuckled nervously. 2D stared at Noodle with curiosity.

"Why is yo' mask still on, love? Yew can take it off, yeh know." Noodle felt the strips of cloth holding it on. If she took it off, she would have nothing to hide her scars. She felt like she should protect her bandmates from the story that would undoubtably make them angry. She released the singer.

"I'm fine, 2D-san." The blue-haired singer smiled.

"Wos wiff this 'san' fing? I fought yew called me 2D-kun." Noodle rubbed her arm and smiled that he would remember such a thing.

"We have not seen each other in over four years, I have no right to assume we are still as close as we were." 2D rolled his eyes.

"Ah cos yeh can! Yeh still me best friend, aren' yeh?" Noodle grinned. A large weight had been lifted off of her shoulders, he hadn't forgotten her after all. The singer grinned goofily in return. He took her hand, a gesture Noodle had forgotten could feel so nice, and led her up to the house.

"C'mon, love, I'll give yew the grand tour, yeah?" Noodle looked back to the two men, one massive and the other green, and followed 2D inside.

Noodle was immediately struck by the sheer size of the windows when she entered the main level. A large kitchen, although messy, occupied the north and east walls, while the rest of the room was set up as a living room. Huge panes of glass served as views out onto the ocean and the magnificent sunset that was currently taking place. Noodle gasped as she dropped 2D's hand and strode over to the window. 2D smiled at her reaction and leaned back against the wall to let her look around.

"It's so… beautiful, 2D-kun. You are so lucky to have this view all the time." 2D shrugged.

"Can' say I've enjoyed it all tha much, love. 'Is is rare, me gettin' to be above sea level." Noodle looked around. She walked over to him and hesitantly placed a hand upon his cheek.

"I read about that. I'm so sorry you had to go through that." 2D nodded and searched her eyes, the only part of her face he could see aside from her lips. He casually reached up and took one of the strings in his hand. Noodle looked down and nodded slowly. She waited for the mask to fall away, but it never did. Noodle didn't look up until his finger under her chin gently forced her to look at him.

"I won't do it until yew're ready." He smiled down at her, "It's good to have yeh back, love." His long arms enfolded her in a hug again. Noodle remembered the phial in her knapsack. As far as she could tell, the singer was fine. No obvious signs of drug abuse. She was puzzled. Perhaps he was just very good at hiding it? He has been on his pills for a long time, it would be hard to distinguish any new symptoms.

Murdoc came stomping through the door just then. The pair sprang apart, both blushing. Murdoc glared at 2D as he passed, making his way into the kitchen.

"Make sure yeh clean up that mess outside, Two-Dents. We don't need rats gettin' up in here." Noodle frowned at his harsh words. 2D nodded shakily, he was still very much afraid of the bassist. Murdoc snagged a bottle of vodka from a cupboard and turned on his heel. He faced the pair.

"'Ey, doll. Why d'you still got tha' mask on?" 2D started to protest that it was her choice to take it off if she wanted to, but he was silenced by Noodle. She supposed the would have to know sometime. She sighed and reached up to the strings.

"I'll show you why I was wearing it, but…" she pulled and let the plastic fall to the ground. The room was silent as Murdoc and 2D caught sight of the bruise spread across her eye and cheek, "you have to promise not to get mad, it won't help." Neither one said a word, struggling to not react. Both men glared at the ground and clenched their fist behind their back, furious that anyone would dare hurt Noodle and leave them powerless to do anything about it. After a moment, Murdoc cleared his throat and set off, rubbing the back of his head. He paused at the door.

"Ehhh… Noodle. It's… nice teh see yeh, doll." He quickly left after that. 2D chuckled.

"Tha's prolly the best greetin' yew're gonna get, yeh know." Noodle smiled.

"I know. C'mon, let's see what we can do about cleaning up." 2D looked around in surprise.

"Yew want to 'elp me clean up the bodies? Noods, yeh don' 'afta do tha'." Noodle smiled.

"Anyone who tried to hurt you or Murdoc deserved what he got. Besides, we can't have any zombies running around, we'll dispose of them properly." 2D grinned and held the door for Noodle as she walked through.

**Aaaaaaaaaaand... review!**


	4. Falling

**Gah, this chapter is so long! It's another one of those that I just couldn't bear to break up. You'll just have to endure.**

**Disclaimer.**

Back outside in the brilliant sunshine, Noodle initially had to shield her eyes. The singer reached for her hand and pulled her to a stretch of the beach covered in the remains of a war zone. Noodle heard Murdoc yelling at Russel to "Gerroff me, Lards! You can't just step wherever yeh please!" and smiled, glad to have a bit of normality. 2D grabbed the nearest smoldering heap of metal and cloth and dragged it to the shore. Noodle stood and stared at the singer until he looked back, forcing her to blush and grab for the nearest pile.

"So… what happened here, 2D-kun?" The singer looked up and shrugged.

"S'nothin outta the ordinary here. Some pirates attacked and we 'ad to fight 'em off. Course, then yew and Russ showed up, and tha' wos a nice surprise." He finished, smiling. Noodle looked up. Pirates attacked here too?

"Pirates. As in… pirates?"

"Yeah, pirates." 2D grinned and held up a curved sword he had uncovered for effect. He waved it around a bit before losing his grip, sending the sword flying into the nearest plastic tree. Noodle giggled and returned to her pile, focusing on pulling pieces that could be salvaged away from the junk. She really should get around to giving 2D the phial. He didn't seem ready to kill himself in a drug-induced frenzy, but Noodle wasn't sure if she could tell if he was. She decided to broach the subject lightly.

"So… er, how've you been?" She didn't look up as she said this, preferring to keep her burning cheeks towards the rubbish heap in front of her.

"M'fine. It's been lonely, y'know. Wiffout yew." 2D didn't look up either, hiding just how much he actually missed the tiny guitarist. His life had been a figurative Hell without her presence. He hadn't realized how much she interacted with him on a daily basis until she was no longer around. He had moved back to England to try and put some semblance of a life together until Murdoc had quite suddenly showed up again…

The bugger.

"How're your… headaches?" Noodle smacked herself in the forehead. What? Why on earth would she ask that? Could she have found a more awkward way to start the conversation? The singer looked up in surprise.

"Er… fine. Love, are yew awright?" Noodle sighed and turned toward him.

"I heard from… somewhere… that you were mixing pills and…" 2D's eyes bugged out. He stepped closer to her with a concerned look on his face.

"Noodle, love… I've been off me pills for _ages_ now." It was Noodle's turn to be surprised.

"What?" The singer smiled proudly.

"Yeah, I couldn't get any o' me pills when I got here to this island, so… I quit." Noodle was bewildered.

"You quit? Just like that?"

"Just like that. Well, awright, it was 'ard… but I found other fings to do teh keep me mind off me 'ead." Noodle cocked her head to the side, smirking.

"Taking up crack again, Mr. Pot?" He smiled and shook his head in mock exasperation.

"No, Noodle. I'll give you a hint. I've been off me pills for 'bout ten months now. Plastic Beach was released a few days ago."

"You wrote the whole thing by yourself?" The singer nodded.

"Tha' and some… other stuff." Noodle nodded and reached down to pick up the mangled remains of what looked like a gun holster. If he claimed he wasn't on drugs… why did Satan send her here? The singer went back to hauling junk to the shore and Noodle took the chance to look him over properly.

He DID look pretty good. He no longer had the spaced out/ perpetually high look about his eyes. He even moved differently. Where he had once had an almost imperceptible shake in his hands, there was now solid steadiness. Noodle noticed he definitely was more muscular as he hauled a heavy piece of metal off the ground. Her eyes zeroed in on the twitch of his arm muscles as they stressed and worked.

Hot damn.

She shook her head and felt her cheeks heat up. She groped for the glass phial which she had moved to her pocket. Noodle turned the small bottle over in her hands. She supposed she didn't need this now… why had Satan told her 2D needed saving? She shrugged and pocketed the bottle once more. Perhaps she could save it if there was trouble.

When the pair finished clearing the beach as best they could, 2D took Noodle's hand once more and led her back to where Murdoc and Russel were standing. Noodle was amused to find Murdoc sitting on the sand, nursing the hand Russel must have stood on. An angry scowl contorted his features as he glared up at the drummer. The drummer, who was in fact, laughing hysterically at Murdoc's situation.

"-didn't know you were so fragile, man! Should we getcha a sling? A full on body cast?" Murdoc muttered murderously under his breath as the pair walked up. The bassist's eyes zeroed in on the two's intertwined fingers and he raised an eyebrow and smirked. The pair stopped in front of the drummer and bassist.

"Hey Noodle-girl, how's the island?"

"It is amazing, Russel, really." Noodle beamed up at her father figure. 2D turned his head and smiled off out to the sea. The one place he considered a prison, she considered a paradise. He turned his attention to Murdoc, still on the ground, who was staring at him with a knowing half-smile.

"Wot's 'append to yeh're arm there, Muds?" Murdoc glanced down a his injured limb and scowled again at Russel.

"Lards 'ere went an' put 'is foot down on me 'and. 'Urts like mad, too." Russel sniggered, causing Murdoc to childishly stick his tongue out at the drummer. Slowly, Murdoc heaved himself off the ground and turned toward the house. He beckoned the remaining three with a wave of his hand.

"C'mon you lot, I got spare rooms fer Noodle and Lards. 'Cept Lards, we'll afta keep yeh out 'ere until we can find somethin' teh make yeh shrink." Russel rolled his eyes and carefully pulled himself to his full height, following the other two as they made their way up to the house.

...

Satan stood behind his desk gazing at a small orb on its surface. An image of a laughing girl with purple hair was inside the orb. A dark figure came up to stand just behind the Devil. He spoke.

"This Noodle is surprisingly strong for all that has happened to her." The Devil looked up and nodded at the newcomer's presence. He cocked his head to the side.

"Why do you say that, Sitri?" The newcomer, obviously named Sitri, bowed slightly.

"Pardon me, sir. It just surprises me that she has not yet told her friends where she has been these past four years." Satan nodded and swept away from the desk, choosing to stare into the fireplace instead.

"Indeed, the fact that she has not told anyone of her struggle is surprising. I'm not entirely sure what to make of it." Satan's new second in command watched the orb a few seconds longer.

"Sir, what do you plan to do now that she has discovered the boy is perfectly fine?" Satan looked back at Sitri.

"Patience, Sitri. There is still a crucial step missing in our little plan here. In time, she will willingly give up her friends to me. I am sure of it." Sitri gazed back into the orb.

"Have you noticed the affection she has shown this blue-haired one? Will this not throw off your plans?"

"She shows the same affection for the green, smelly one and the fat, huge one. I don't think it will get in the way. Our little Noodle isn't in the best condition right now, but her heart remains the same… for now. She won't want to put the boy in an uncomfortable situation if he does not return the affection. Trust me, you just tend to grow close to the people you put in harm's way."

"I see…" Sitri looked sideways at Satan, "And does that affect you very often?"

"I'm going to pretend you didn't just compare me to those humans."

"I'm only saying, the girl may be unable to be turned." Satan sighed.

"As I said before, Sitri, patience. I know what I am doing… and if she proves to be obstinate, I have a little something that will… help her to obey."

...

Noodle gazed around her new room. It was at least three times bigger than her hotel room in Essex and five times more luxurious. Floor to ceiling glass served as giant windows out onto the ocean. Smooth wood covered the floor and the walls were painted a light blue. The windows had heavy curtains waiting at the edges to pull the room into darkness when the time came. The room was still fairly bare, Murdoc had given her the freedom to decorate as she pleased and bade her and 2D to "behave themselves" before he walked out, hands in pockets. Noodle had just stepped out of her massive closet after hanging up her thin jacket and found 2D standing in front of the window. She silently walked up to his side and brushed his arm, startling him.

"Wahh! Oh…" Noodle gazed out the window with him.

"What are you looking at, 2D-kun?"

"The sky. I can't wait for yeh to see the stars tonight, love. There're so many, it's fantastic! There aren't any lights out here… 'cept the light 'ouse." He turned and grinned at her, making her heart backflip, though she wasn't sure why. She was a bit nervous, being in the same room as 2D. She had missed him so much…

But this wasn't just her missing him. She felt… strange. Like she had finally woken up when she saw him smile. Noodle gazed at the side of the singer's face she could see. He had stubble on his cheeks and chin, it made him look older. Not his full thirty three… but older than she remembered. He glanced down and noticed her staring.

"Wot? 'Ave I got somefin' on me face?" Noodle was brought back to reality.

"Er, no. I was just… never mind. What do you want to do?" 2D shrugged and turned away from the window.

"We could… watch a movie? Or… play a video game? Any 'a those sound good?" The two started walking toward the door and to the lift. The lift was cramped and slightly awkward but they made it work.

"Do you want to play with me?" 2D looked around with wide eyes. A light blush crossed his cheeks and, once Noodle realized what she said, crossed to Noodle's as well. 2D was mentally slapping himself for accidentally thinking what he had been thinking… he felt like a perverted little boy. The pair stuttered at each other for a moment. Both coughed awkwardly and fell into silence, looking down.

"Play… your keyboard… and I'll play guitar…"

"Um, yeah… sounds good." Both gratefully stepped out of the lift when it hit the recording studio level. Noodle went to the far wall where a few guitars were stored as she hadn't had time to grab hers when the ship went down. She selected a plain black one and went about tuning it. 2D slumped over to his second favorite keyboard and plugged it in. When they were both ready, Noodle kicked off the start of Hong Kong. 2D looked at her curiously but came in when his part started.

Noodle played the song with ease and marveled at the fact. She focused on the strings of the guitar, the way her fingers could so easily pull notes from them, the way the sound seemed to course through her body and take up rest in her soul, the way his voice seemed to blend over it all, turning it into a work of art. She closed her eyes and picked out a slow improv. 2D stopped singing and watched her. He smiled at how peaceful she looked and nearly missed his next entrance. The song came to a close and Noodle opened her eyes.

"Why didja pick that song, love?" Noodle looked down and smiled.

"I don't know… I like the way it sounds… it's probably one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard." 2D took a seat on a nearby amp and leaned back against the wall, crossing his arms.

"Yeh can't 'ave 'eard too many, then… I know _dozens_ of pretty songs, love." Noodle looked away and grinned. She couldn't quite explain it, but… her heart was beating faster than it normally did. And this was at least the third time it had happened today. Was she sick? She didn't feel sick. She watched 2D turn and step onto the amp. He used his substantial arm strength to haul his body up and reach for something on a high shelf. Noodle could see his muscles flex.

Definitely not sick.

When he got back down, he turned to find Noodle staring at him. He blushed and raised an eyebrow. She flushed as well and looked down. What was wrong with her?

"Is somefin wrong, love?"

"No, Toochi," He grinned at the old nickname. She walked over and ran her fingers lightly across his arm. 2D fought a shudder and Noodle felt the muscles underneath her hand twitch slightly, "But tell me, when did you get so… ripped?" She giggled. 2D suddenly became very preoccupied with the way her lips twisted up when she smiled.

"Uh… wot now?" She repeated the question.

"Oh! Well, livin' on a island is pretty 'ard work yeh know. Whenever 'ere's a mess teh clean up, I afta do it. And dead robots and stuff is 'eavy." 2D looked up suddenly and found Noodle's face inches from his own. She had the same bewildered look on her face that 2D was sure occupied his. He thought to himself that he should probably pull away, but he couldn't quite find the motivation to move.

Noodle's gaze furtively flicked down to his lips. She wanted to lean forward a bit and press her lips on his. Would that be strange? She and the singer had lived as brother and sister for years at Kong, why was everything so different now? She felt a burning desire in her lips to grab him and pull him close. She decided to go with it. She leaned forward a bit and heard a soft exhalation as 2D did the same. His hand crept up her arm as they drew near. She could feel his breath on her lip. Suddenly, a small voice interrupted the couple.

_"Better give him what he wants, before he gets bored, my dear."_ Noodle yanked herself back, leaving 2D with a startled expression. He looked hurt for a second, but casually arranged his features into a mask of indifference. Noodle didn't notice, she was listening for the voice.

_"He's been so desperate for some female companionship, he'd do anything for a little action. Especially from someone as wounded as you…"_ Noodle looked up, suddenly back in this world. The singer was concentrated on her bruised eye, but met her gaze when she reentered her expression. He looked at her curiously. Noodle backed up and gazed at him almost fearfully.

"I have to go." She dashed to the lift and called it, scurrying in when the doors opened. 2D stood with a dumbstruck expression plastered on his face.

"Noodle…?" He said to the empty air.

Noodle was huddled in a nonexistent corner of the cylindrical lift, chest heaving. How had 2D not heard the voice that spoke in her ear? It had seemed so close. Speaking of close, Noodle was very much aware at how close she and 2D had come to a kiss. It scared her how much she wanted to run back down and press her lips against his, if only once. The lift dinged as she reached the level of her room. She stumbled out and grabbed the wall for support. The voice and almost-kiss was enough to make her feel fatigued. She staggered to her room and more or less collapsed on the bed. She didn't know what to do or what to think about. What did it mean that she wanted to kiss 2D? Why was she suddenly hearing voices?

_"Because you are still… MINE!"_ Noodle sat up and wildly looked around, _"Don't forget it, girl. That boy may be alright for now, but think. Does he really want you here? You, all scratched up and broken. The green one didn't want you so much he built a cyborg."_ Noodle's fist clenched. The Voice didn't have the same timbre as the Prince of Darkness, but the accent and syntax were unmistakable.

"Leave me alone!" She dove under her pillow and buried her head, drowning out the laughter with her pillow.

Though it seemed like seconds later, Noodle was surprised to see the sun setting through the windows when she pulled herself up. Had she been asleep the entire day? She hauled herself out of bed and found that she felt hot and sticky. The sun really did beat down here. She looked down at her dress and stockings and shrugged. Murdoc had sent away for some new clothes for her and demanded they be rushed to the island. She walked over to the dresser and pulled out a pair of denim shorts and a simple camisole. Better to be comfortable than hot, right?

After pulling on her clothes and ditching her shoes in her closet, she strutted out the door to find her friends. Her room was located on the same floor as the kitchen and living room. She walked down the narrow hallway and watched the sun reflected from strategically placed windows play across the floor. If the Devil's voice was playing around in her head, she had to be insane. Cases like that didn't just appear. She felt dirty, unclean that his voice was so near. She rounded the corner to the kitchen and ran into what seemed like a solid mass. She tripped backwards and caught herself on the corner. The thing she fell into gave an "Oi!" in surprise was pushed back a few steps. Noodle looked up and realized she had run into 2D, making his way around the corner. Both looked awkwardly at the other.

"So… er, wotcha doin', Noods?"

"Er, I was going to grab a snack from the kitchen… what were you doing?"

"Oh me? I wos, yeh know, headin' up teh see… yew. But then I- I remembered I wos 'ungry so I was on my way to the kitchen… also."

"Oh."

"Yeah." They stared awkwardly at each other for a few more minutes.

"So, let's go to the kitchen, yeah?"

"Right, right." 2D stood first and stretched out his arm to help Noodle to her feet. The two walked side by side down the remainder of the hallway in relative silence.

"So… why were you coming to see me?"

"Oh, uh… well, yew 'aven't been outta yeh room awl day 'nd I wanted to see if yew were 'ungry. But… I guess yeh are, so…" he trailed off. They arrived at the kitchen. Noodle stepped forward and went to rifle through the contents of the nearest cupboard. She pulled out a can of soup and turned back to 2D for his approval. He nodded and went to the far cupboard to pull out two bowls. Noodle crouched and opened a cabinet door to search for a pot to cook the soup in. In doing so, her camisole rode up a few inches. 2D turned around and stopped at the sight of the tattoo that adorned Noodle's lower back. He tilted his head, had that always been there? As he stared at it, he began to get a strange feeling in his stomach. The way her back muscles twitched and rippled made the tattoo move slightly. More of the tattoo seemed to extend past the hem of her shirt. What else was there? The singer felt the strangest urge to find out… to be able to pull the shirt up and trail his fingers up and down her spine…

A clunk from within the cupboard brought 2D back to the present. Noodle emerged from the cupboard, pot in hand. 2D found it hard to focus on anything _but_ her back as she walked to the stove and started preparing the soup. She shook her head and turned suddenly and caught him, his eyes slowly making their way up to her face.

"Something wrong, 2D-kun?" 2D didn't initially register that she was talking to him.

"Wha-? Oh! Uh… no, nofin' wrong, love. But… is it jus' me or do yew now 'ave some ink where yew didn' befo'?" Noodle grinned. She turned and lifted the back of her shirt for him to see. He felt his heart nearly stop as more of her smooth back was exposed. The tattoo was a mess of Japanese characters all interlocking and making a beautiful design. He wanted to trace the symbols. 2D could feel his head becoming a jumbled mass of thoughts and emotions all pertaining to the drawings decorating the smooth expanse of skin…

"Wos it mean?" He barely was able to choke out. She spoke a sentence in her usual flawless Japanese.

"Watashi no kokoro, watashi no tamashī, watashi no uta." The band had all picked up bits and pieces of her native tongue over the years, Murdoc even managed to recognize when she was cussing him out, but 2D had no idea what she had said.

"… and wos _that_ mean?" Noodle blushed lightly and looked down. She repeated the phrase in English and 2D felt his heart soar and his cheeks heat.

**Review, my dears!**


	5. Breakdown

Oh** hey… meh, I wrote this… you should read it. **

**Disclaimer. **

"My heart, my soul, my song." She said, staring hard at the ground. 2D grinned and felt the ground leave him as his soul floated up in a happy escalation.

TEN YEARS AGO…

A young girl ran around the swing set in a happy circle. It wasn't often that she got her favorite person to play with her at the park. The lanky singer followed closely behind with his hands stuck in his pockets, lazily puffing on a cigarette. He watched her as she ran to the farthest swing, which also happened to be the one farthest off the ground. She hopped desperately at the rubber seat and clambered up. She rocked back and forth, trying to get herself moving without much luck. 2D strutted up behind her and took hold of the chains. He pulled back and smiled at the girl's happy squeal. When he had pulled back to the proper height, nearly shoulder height on him, he let go, sending the girl sailing through the air. Satisfied that the girl was entertained for now, the twenty-three year old went to sit on the nearby bench. Not many men of his age would willingly go to a park, especially in broad daylight, but 2D was happy to make Noodle happy. He leaned back and stretched his arms out to either side of his body. He took a deep drag off his cigarette and let his eyes trail a passing jogger. His thoughts were interrupted just then.

"Toochi, watch me!" 2D slowly took his attention off the backside of the jogger and turned back to his companion. The little girl had built up enough momentum that she was nearing the top of the swing set with each kick.

"I'm wotchin', Noods!" 2D watched as the girl positioned herself strangely on the swing. He felt a momentary confusion as she did this. 2D's eyes widened as the girl threw herself off the swing, flipping in the air, landing a few feet from where she launched herself. He gaped as she landed on the ground without so much as a wobble. He got up, rather ungainly, and ran over to where she stood. He clutched her arms through her jacket.

"Noodle! Why didja do tha'? Yew coulda 'urt yehself!" Noodle giggled.

"I'm sowwy, Toochi. It was fun!" She beamed up at him at having caught his attention. He heaved a sigh of relief. He slowly got up.

"Jis don' do it again. I dunno if me 'eart can take that kinda panic." He turned to walk away… and promptly crashed to the ground. He had tripped over the leg of the swing set. Noodle giggled again and ran around to his side.

"2D-kun… awright?" The singer lifted his head to look at the little girl.

"M'fine, love. Don' worry 'bout me." He got up with a few mumbled curses and rubbed his kneecap where he had fallen. Noodle covered the hand on his knee with her own.

"Not… bleeding?" She looked up, hoping that she had used the correct form. English was such a confusing language! The singer touched his nose to be sure.

"No blood. See? Ih's awright. No 'arm done." He leaned down and scooped the girl up. She giggled at being taken so high into the air. "Cos if I wos bleedin', Muds and Russ wouldn't let me live it down for weeks!" Noodle frowned and hugged the singer.

"I don't like it when Murdoc is mean to 2D." She said, stubbornly. 2D chuckled.

"Neither do I, love. But, at least yew aren' mean to me, yeah?" He set the tiny guitarist on the ground, where she stood, pondering and hanging onto his pant leg.

"2D? Is Noodle your favorite?" The little girl looked up at him with such an honest fear that it nearly broke his heart.

"Ah cos' yeh're my favorite! Yew're my…" he thought for a moment, "Yew, love, are my heart, my soul, and my song. Tha's 'ow much yeh mean to me." Noodle grinned again, making the tall singer grin in response. She jumped up and grabbed his hand, pulling him down closer to her height, and tugged him along to the slide. She made him wait at the bottom and catch her when she slid down.

PRESENT DAY

He wondered if she remembered him telling her that, or if the saying was pulled from somewhere else. Either way, his own words reproduced in ink were enough to send his head reeling. Fans got tattoos of his lyrics all the time, some even liked to blatantly broadcast that fact when they were on tour, but this was different. 2D looked back around at Noodle to find her massaging a spot on her forehead.

"'Eadache, love?" She glanced up.

"Yeah… a bit. I think I'm going to go lie down. I don't feel so good." Noodle managed to walk past the singer and get to the hallway before her legs gave out. She clutched the wall for balance and slowly made it to her room. When she arrived, she pulled herself onto the bed and immediately closed her eyes. There was a whispering sound in her head. It had started when she was looking for the pot and steadily grew louder. A sharp pain cut through her consciousness again, causing her to clutch her head in agony. The Voice was back, and from its tone, was not happy.

_"Is it nice to sit there with him and pretend he likes you? You know, he probably hasn't gotten laid in, what? Two years? Bit of a long wait. I'd go after the first female I saw in that state."_ Noodle shook her head. This Voice was vicious and unforgiving.

_"The green one doesn't want you here either, my dear. He even built a cyborg to replace you. How terrible were you, that he had to build a machine to replace you?"_ Noodle gnashed her teeth. Surely someone would hear the strange voices coming from her room and check on her.

_"No no no, Noodle dear. No one can hear me but you. This is all in your head… perfectly safe… and all mine." _

"Then… I can ignore you." A loud cackle filled her ears.

_"Try if you like, dear. But you can't hide from what you know to be true. You can see it in the way he looks at you… lust unbound. But does he know what you hear? What you've seen?"_ Noodle cringed. She didn't deserve to be with someone as good as 2D. She was unclean, the Devil's agent. How could anyone stand to be near her? Her fist trembled.

"Get out of my head!" The Voice laughed again.

_"I am a part of you. We are intertwined, servant and master. You are MINE!"_ The Voice cackled and trailed off, leaving Noodle in a terrorized stupor on her bed.

2D hesitated at Noodle's door. She hadn't been out of there for three days now. At first, 2D was under the impression that Noodle wasn't feeling well and was resting. He even calmed Russel down from his panic that she in need of serious medical attention. Russel had gone to her door that night to try and tempt her with some soup. The door was locked shut and there was no answer from within. Russel chalked it up to Noodle catching up on her rest. The second day found the remaining three bandmates glancing uneasily at her door whenever they passed. Was she still sleeping? This was now the third day and 2D was getting anxious. He raised his hand and prepared to knock. What if she really was sick and just needed the sleep? It had to have been tiring getting to the island in the first place and no one knew exactly what had happened on her vacation to the Maldives. Whenever someone brought it up, she had quickly changed the subject. Then again… what if something was wrong? He raised his hand again and steeled his nerves. He would rather beg forgiveness for waking her than have her sit all alone if she was upset. He knocked three times.

No answer. What a surprise.

He sighed. The singer looked both ways down the narrow hallway and turned the handle in spite of himself. To his utter shock, the door swung open. 2D carefully poked his head inside. It was very dark. The curtains were drawn, the only light came from a sliver on the window where the curtains hadn't quite been pulled together properly. He slowly stepped inside.

"Noodle? Yew in 'ere, darlin'?"

"Leave." 2D swing his head to the side of the room where her bed stood. The bed itself seemed empty, but her voice could still be heard.

"Wos 'at? Noodle, wos goin' on? Are yew awright?" Suddenly, a shoe came hurtling out of nowhere. It hit 2D in the stomach and he let out an "OOF!" in surprise.

"LEAVE!" 2D groped for the lights witch behind him. He flipped the switch and heard a low growl of disapproval from the bed. He looked around himself with his mouth slightly open.

The once-spotless room was a complete wreck. Clothes littered the ground, some articles even looked as if they'd been clawed apart. Blank sheet music lay scattered in one corner and various writing utensils were stuck in the wall behind him. 2D whipped his head around to where he thought Noodle was. He let out a gasp. Noodle sat huddled by the foot of the bed. Her hair was tangled and her eyes looked red-rimmed. Her shirt had the sleeves torn off and her shorts were in no better condition. 2D slowly walked to her and sank to his haunches to level with her.

"Noodle, love. Wos 'appened to yeh?" She gazed blearily up at him.

"2D-kun… you must leave me alone." He gripped her arm solidly.

"I'm not leavin' yew like this and don't try to make me." She started to protest but was cut off by her own thoughts. 2D couldn't hear but Noodle was being assaulted by the Voice again. She groaned and covered her head in her hands. 2D didn't know what to do. He carefully took hold of her other arm and hoisted her to her feet. She was a bit unsteady, but 2D managed to get her out the door. As they walked along the hallway, Noodle kept thrashing about and whispering in another language. 2D could tell it wasn't Japanese, but he didn't know what it was for sure. A particularly bad spasm hit her and made her clutch his t-shirt in her fist. 2D knew he should feel ashamed that he wanted her to just take the shirt off, but her proximity was doing strange things to his concentration. He sat her down on the sofa and ran into the adjoining kitchen space. He wildly opened cupboards, searching for something, anything to give her to eat. She hadn't eaten in over two days, surely she could eat something.

"2D… I'm cold." He glanced up. She had sounded quite normal, not her strange mumbles or her previous tone in which she had yelled at him.

"Ok, love. Lemme jis find yeh somefin' to eat an' ill go get yeh a sweater."

"2D… I'm really cold." He stopped. She hadn't added the "kun" or even "san" after his name. He looked up at her again. She was staring at him with her hands wrapped around her chest. He put down his bowl. Something really was wrong with her.

"Ok… ok, love. I'll be right back. Er… just don't move, yeah? I'll be back." He quickly ran to her room. How he was going to find a simple sweater in that mess, he didn't know. But he'd be damned if he didn't know he'd search until he found one. He shouldered her door open and nearly tripped over the toppled wastebasket. He started with the nearest pile of clothes. He through a blouse and a pair of pants over his shoulder. He winced as he picked up a lacy pair of her underwear.

'L_ater Stu, we're looking for a sweater.'_ He tossed the lacy scrap over his shoulder unceremoniously. 2D spotted a sleeve hanging out of the next pile. He grinned and went to pull at it.

Just a sleeve. Looked like the missing sleeve to Noodle's current shirt. 2D swore and cast it aside. He kicked a pile of clothes randomly. Out of sheer luck, he happened upon a gray sweater with purple stripes. He thanked God and took it up, tearing back out of the room, nearly tripping again. He skidded into the main room and held up his prize.

"Noods! I got yew a sweater! I-" He stopped at the sight before him. Noodle was standing with tears running down her cheeks, holding her arm close to her chest. Murdoc was standing next to her, glaring furiously at him with his arms crossed.

"Muds… wos wrong?" Murdoc wordlessly picked up Noodle's wrist from her side and displayed it. Crimson blood showed in slashes across her wrist and up her arm. 2D's eyes widened and he felt his jaw drop.

"What did you do, dullard?"

**Review powers, ACTIVATE!**


	6. Breakthrough

I** bring you… a new chapter! *shock and awe* I was in some deep philosophical mood when I wrote this and I realize it's a bit confusing… so, for comprehension's sake, I shall put an explanation at the end. Enjoy! P.S. The rating might be going through a change here in the next chapter. You have been warned. **

**Disclaimer. **

Noodle glanced up at the blue-haired man rooting around in the cupboards in front of her. He was so worried about her. She looked down again. Why? She was worthless to him. Undeserving. She was the Devil's underling. She had no right to intermingle with these good people. The ever-present Voice chuckled in her ear.

_"Give them to me. Make them pay for what they've done to you."_ Noodle closed her eyes. It wasn't what they'd done to her… it was what she was doing to them. She watched again as the singer panicked around the small space. She felt a shudder run through her body and her eyes rolled back in her head slightly. She had to get him out of here. He didn't need to see this.

"2D… I'm cold." 2D looked back, distractedly. He mumbled something about waiting and turned back. Her eyes flashed black. She wrapped her hands around herself to keep her grip on reality. The attack was coming fast, he _had _to leave.

"2D… I'm really cold." He looked back again with a concerned expression.

"Ok… ok, love. I'll be right back. Er… just don't move, yeah? I'll be back." He trotted off to her bedroom. And just in time, Noodle fell to the floor and curled up in the fetal position.

The attacks had become more frequent. The first one occurred right after her session with 2D in the recording studio and had lasted several minutes. Horrific images had assaulted her mind's eye and driven her to scream into her pillow. The Voice had whispered all sorts of terrible things in her ear… about her friends, her own pitiful life, and everything in between. She was forced to relive every bad thing that happened to her in Hell. She was forced to see her last day with Mr. Kyuzo and the other children. She had given up on leaving the lights on, light did not deter the frightening images. She figured it was better not to see herself anymore once she started scraping at her own skin. All the Voice told her was to "give her friends up" and "make them pay for abandoning you". Noodle clenched her nails in the soft carpet. The cackling started.

_"Do it, pathetic girl. They are so unhappy with your presence. Take your revenge… you don't need to put up with their insolence."_ A high, breathy gasp escaped Noodle as she fought to keep from screaming. Pain centered in her head and pulsed there, a white-hot reminder of the power Satan held over her.

_"When is the last time you saw or talked to that green one? Or even your precious drummer? They don't want you."_ A tear rolled down Noodle's cheek,_ "Throw them off the cliff. Give them to me… that singer you find so fascinating would do well down here… so many women to fornicate with…"_ Noodle wrenched herself to a standing position. She slashed at her arm in frustration. The Voice died a little. She was able to open her eyes. So this was the trick? Suicide victims didn't communicate through Satan, would this vain attempt be enough? She glanced down at her perfectly smooth wrist. She tried her nails, no effect on the Voice. She spotted 2D's switch blade casually resting on the nearby table. She grabbed it up and slashed horizontally. The Voice screeched in agony and keener off slowly, leaving Noodle to gasp for air and drop the knife to the ground. It was that moment that Murdoc decided to strut in the door.

"'Ey there, doll." When Noodle didn't answer, he stopped to look at her. Her chest was heaving and blood was running down her wrist. His mismatched eyes noticed the blood before her expression. He slowly walked over and picked up her wrist from where it lay by her side. The cigarette dangling from his lips moved as he spoke.

"Wos 'is?" Noodle hastily swiped at tears on her cheeks.

"Nothing." Murdoc raised an eyebrow, clearly challenging her answer.

"Yeh didn' do 'is te yehself, didja love?" Noodle yanked her wrist back but didn't answer. Murdoc sighed and put his cigarette out on the heel of his boot. He took her other wrist lightly and led her to the sink. The green-skinned bassist started the water and held her bloodied wrist under the cool stream. Noodle flinched as the water hit the scrape but didn't pull away. When he had finished, he turned off the water and lightly patted her wrist dry. He then took her by her good wrist and tugged her back to the living room. He bent down and looked her in the eye.

"I dunno if you hurt yehself or not… but if you did, I'd be extremely unhappy, yeah? I don't need teh deal with it… and I don't think Russel or the dullard would appreciate it either. Didja do it, doll?" Noodle turned away, unwilling to let him see her cry. How could she tell him what was going on? What kind of conversation would that be? 'I hurt myself to stop the voice that haunts me from telling me to hand my friends off to the Devil'? Not a very good idea. Instead, she shrugged and pulled away.

"Don't tell them." She turned to walk away but was stopped by Murdoc's hand on her shoulder. He was glaring at the hallway where running feet sounded. Out of the corner of his mouth, he hissed at her.

"This isn't something anyone can run away from, doll." 2D appeared, rather breathless and held up her favorite sweater.

"Noods! I got yew a sweater. I- wos wrong, Muds?" Murdoc grabbed her arm again and showed it to the singer. Noodle got one look at 2D's horrified expression before her mind rebelled and made slump to the ground again, unconscious.

Both the singer and bassist lunged for the girl as she fell, barely catching her head before it hit the floor. Murdoc swing her up into his arms and glared at 2D until he moved to let the bassist pass. He followed Murdoc to Noodle's room and watched helplessly as Murdoc kicked a pile of clothes off of the bed before laying her gently on top of the covers. 2D was quickly shooed out of the room and Murdoc shut the door behind him when he followed. The two men stood outside the door and glared coldly at each other.

"Did you hit 'er?" 2D was outraged.

"Why in bloody 'ell would I do a fing like tha'?" Murdoc raised his fist to silence the blue-haired man. "'Sides, when I left, she wos fine! Wull… not _fine_, yeh know, but…" Murdoc slapped his hand over his eyes.

"Sweet Satan, why do I bother? So she didn't have them cuts on 'er wrist when you left?" 2D shook his head no. "Musta done it to 'erself then." The bassist muttered to himself. He suddenly strolled out to the living room, 2D on his heels. The green-skinned man glanced around until he happened upon what he was looking for. He stopped low and picked up the bloodied switch blade. He held it up to the lift where it twinkled red in the sunlight.

"'Is is yours, isn't it?" Murdoc glanced at the singer out of the corner of his eye. The singer nodded yes. Murdoc causally flipped the blade shut and folded it in his palm. He then whipped around and punched 2D squarely in the nose, sending him to the ground.

"Don't leave yeh'r bloody knife lying 'round any more, yeh hear me?" Murdoc growled. 2D cowered and covered his nose with his hand. The bruises under his eyes were going to be that much more noticeable now. Murdoc stalked off, grumbling and cursing in the same breath.

Noodle awoke from her fainting spell nearly as fast as it came up. Her eyes flew open and she sat up. The room was still dark and Noodle noticed she was lying on her bed. She groaned and grabbed her forehead as the Voice started on her again.

_"Glad you had a little break, dear? Naughty, naughty… harming yourself like that. You know the rules." N_oodle felt the white heat in her head again.

"Atchi e itte!" She whispered to the deaf air around her.

_"Foolish child, just hand them over… they are of no use to you!" _

"Why do to want them? What have they done?" Noodle screamed as her body forced itself off the bed. She was swung around to the mirror on the back of her door. Noodle didn't recognize the woman staring back at her. The figure's hair was messy and clearly unkempt. Slashes covered her wrist and bruises trailed up and down her arms and legs. The bruise over the figure's eye wasn't fading… it showed up as evilly as ever. Noodle saw the figure's lips move, heard the words in her own tongue… but her mind was no longer in control of her body's actions.

"This isn't about them, foolish child. This has always been about you… join me… hand them over!" Noodle watched her lips speak the words in the mirror. She struggled to gain control again but she felt her consciousness being pushed pushed out of her mind by a strong force. The figure's face looked up again and smiled. All Noodle could do was watch… as she, herself, took the mirror off the door and hurl it to the ground, shattering the glass in a million pieces.

"Sitri is in control, now." Noodle heard her vice echo through the empty room

...

As Noodle understood it, her physical self and mental self were now separated. She still inhabited her mind… but only as an observer. It was strange, to see a person's actions first hand, but be able to do nothing to control or change them. Sitri, she didn't know who this was, now controlled her physical body. She watched as Sitri destroyed the room in her body, ripping curtains, lobbing clothes around, and generally just making a mess. She knew the Satan-controlled form must be making an awful amount of noise, she didn't know if her bandmates were aware, or even brave enough to check on her to find out. They must be terrified of her. Every once in a while, Noodle would catch an image of her destructive self in a reflective surface. She was right. She looked absolutely terrifying. A demonic being had kicked Noodle out of her own head and replaced it with a feral, snarling doppleganger. There were times when Noodle was dimly aware of Sitri muttering strange things in a foreign tongue, sitting crouched in a corner, overlooking the beach. Other times, she was aware of Sitri's fury and anger as he made her rage around and tear things to pieces. For some reason, Sitri never made her body leave the room, never made her go on the hunt for her bandmates. The being sharing her space must be intent on only her slow destruction. To console herself, Noodle thought of her friends. How safe they should feel, that they were not being controlled by a demonic presence. She sometimes thought of 2D.

Once, she was focusing on a memory of their almost-kiss in the recording studio. Sitri tuned into this thought and cackled hysterically, going for the door, assumedly to scrape the singer to pieces to spite Noodle. Noodle's mental and true self cried in outrage at this. She felt an uncharacteristic burst of rage. She wanted to tear herself apart for this. As she watched herself turn the handle of the door, she retaliated.

Noodle felt her consciousness give an almighty shove to Sitri's mental force. She experienced a small moment of control. Suddenly, she was totally aware of everything, from the coolness of the room, to the feel of torn cloth under her feet.

"No! You shall not harm 2D!" Sitri's force fought for control, making her head spin. Her strength gave out then, sending her to a mental corner of her mind. She heard her voice start to speak.

"Do you love the twat? Do you want to make him yours? How pathetic…" Noodle braced herself and shoved again, breaking into control again. She forced herself away from the door and gripped the side of the bed to keep herself there.

It was a seemingly never-ending battle for dominance. One side would push and force her body to the door and then the other side would retaliate and force her back. Noodle began to feel exhausted whenever she came into her own, though Sitri never seemed to tire. She was feeling woozy again, not all there. Her rebellious thoughts were at war with Sitri's desires. He was filling their shared space with images of 2D's mangled body, bloody and battered. Noodle tried to think of good things, holding his hand, laughing with him… she even allowed herself to consider what might have happened if she let their almost-kiss carry on. Her thoughts were a battlefield. Little by little, Noodle was pushed out the door and down the hallway, much to her dismay. Her legs carried her to the lift and to the singer's room. Her hand came up to knock on the door. The sleepy man answered the door with a groggy "Hullo?" and was surprised to see Noodle, more that, he was surprised to see her looking like she'd been beaten. Sitri lunged for him, Noodle fought with newfound strength and steered her hands away from his neck, moving instead to his shoulders. He allowed himself to be pushed back into his room.

2D was very confused. He had been woke up at two in the morning to find a very strange sight at his door. Noodle had awoken, but she didn't look… right. Her eyes would switch from looking half-crazed and bloodthirsty to looking scared and innocent as per usual. He grew even MORE confused when she pushed him into his room and pinned him to the wall. He didn't mind the last bit so much, in fact he thought he rather enjoyed that part. But then, Noodle started talking, and 2D's eyebrows were hard pressed to be able to go any higher.

"Do it, girl! You have him now!" Noodle was in the crazy-eye phase, looking at him like he was a piece of meat.

"I won't! You can't make me!" Back to her usual self. She seemed to be struggling to let him go, but something was stopping her.

"Noodle… are you awright?" His hands came up to brush her hair away from her forehead. When his skin touched hers, both felt a small shock and Noodle's eyes cleared. 2D snatched his hand away, afraid he had hurt her. The psychotic look came into her eye again. She was angry now and glared at him.

"Don't touch me…" She growled in a voice almost an octave below her normal tones. The singer was thoroughly terrified now, her hands gripped his t-shirt tightly and she glared at him spitefully. He carefully took hold of her wrist. A look of agony appeared on her face before being driven out by a look of total bliss. Back in control, Noodle looked up at him. She had figured it out… to keep in control, there was something she had to do.

2D only saw the slightest flicker of an idea flash in her eyes before she lunged at him, kissing him squarely on the mouth.

**… how'd you all hold up? Confused? Let me explain. To fully understand this chapter, you have to think of people's bodies being separate from their souls. Noodle is being possessed and another being is trying to force itself into her consciousness. By laws of physics, no two objects can equal the same space, so only one soul can be in charge of a body at one time, creating a struggle between the two souls. While not in control, the other soul is simply watching the body's movements like a movie, powerless to stop it. Noodle's soul has been pushed aside in her consciousness to allow Sitri to take over. In this case, Noodle finds it easier to maintain control when she feels safe. And where does she feel safe? Now you get it!**

Review!


	7. Quick Fix

**Here it is, folks. The sexytimes chapter! You were warned in the last chapter, so don't get mad. Anyway, it's artfully done so there's nothing too graphic. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer.**

Satan slammed his fist on the desk, rattling papers and leaving a scorch mark on the dark wood. Sitri's lifeless form lay behind him on a raised bench. His lieutenant was currently out on a mission, but it wasn't going well. The girl had found a way around his possession. He glanced into the orb acidly. Sitri's presence was severely weakened in the girl's head and there was next to nothing he could do about it. That boy was getting to be very tiresome. True, Satan had cheated by trying to force the girl to join him, but he was growing desperate. His once-loyal subjects on Earth were slowly and steadily turning against him, he was short on troops. He sent a message to Sitri.

'Sitri, It is vitally important that you remain tethered to the girl's soul. We cannot afford to lose her.' He got a reply back shortly. The signal strength was weak, as if Sitri had been hard-pressed to find the strength to send it.

'Affirmative, sir. Any further orders?' The Devil chose not to reply. He turned and stalked away, wringing his hands behind his back. He glanced out what would have been considered a window on Earth, but was more of a hole in the wall down here. His empire was magnificent, there was no denying it. Nearly as pleasant to him as that… other place was to humans. Satan sighed nostalgically. He faintly remembered heaven. His memories were tainted and twisted now. All he knew was this place, his kingdom. One of his head demons ghosted in the room just then. In his gnarled hands, he held a scroll, offering it to Satan. He took it and waited until the demon had left again before opening it. Inside was a bill from the carpeting company. He rolled his eyes and let the bill dissolve in fire and ash before dusting off his hands.

He didn't know how best to go about getting the girl's soul after all. There were so many things to consider. As of late, the girl was winning against him too… whether she knew it or not. He rested his palms on the desk and leaned into them.

He was running out of options.

…

The minute Noodle's lips had touched 2D's, a fire erupted in her skin. Not like the white-hot heat of the attacks… but more like a slow, sweet burn. Noodle heard the keening off sound that had accompanied her botched suicide attempt, and she fancied she liked this way of stopping the Voice better. A part of her, a close friend of the Voice, told her that she was still unworthy of being with such a good person. Unknowingly, 2D quickly shut that voice up with his lips. 2D pushed away from the wall and wrapped an arm around her waist. She ran her tongue lightly across his lips, making him shudder. He pulled away then, whispering against her lips.

"I can' do this, love. Yew're not in yeh'r 'ead. I can'…" Noodle's face fell.

"Please 2D… I need… I need to be able to feel…" 2D tensed up. He spoke in a low, hurt voice.

"Is tha' awl this is to yew? A quick fix?" Noodle raised an eyebrow.

"I don't know what else to do, 2D. My head is all mixed up and I can't-" She was interrupted by the singer.

"Wull, my 'ead gets mixed up too, yeh know. It's not tha' I don' want to… it's that I shouldn'. Yew're only twenty-one, Noods." He looked at her sadly. She bristled slightly. Sitri was gaining strength. If she didn't talk fast, she was going to end up lunging at the singer again, this time for his throat.

"Look, this is the only thing I've found that stops the…" 2D looked up. She colored and looked away. She couldn't tell him she was being possessed, he would cast her out.

"Stops the what? Yew neva' tell me anyfin' anymo'. Yew're supposed to be me best friend an' yew keep running away! What for? I have feelings too, yeh know!" Sitri was stirring, causing Noodle to shudder. The singer ranted on. Noodle decided she'd had enough of this mindless chatter and took action. "-and maybe, if yew're let me talk to yeh, yeh'd find tha' someone was willin' to mmpph-" 2D's lips were suddenly occupied. She kissed him soundly and then reached up to whisper in his ear.

"Just forget it for now, Toochi. We can discuss it later. I just need someone to be close to…" She pressed her lips to his neck, making him shudder. The reminder of how her lips felt on his seemed to make him forget his previous argument. He mouthed at her neck and trailed up her jaw back to her lips. Noodle felt Sitri stir in one last attempt for control. She noticed 2D watching her. He must have seen the crazy in her eyes, for he pulled back fractionally. She pulled him back by gripping a handful of his shirt.

"Whatever you do… don't you dare stop." She attacked him again. He nodded against her lips and pressed her against the door. She trailed her fingers up his spine, inducing another shudder from the singer. He dropped his head to her neck and started kissing a spot there, intent on leaving his mark. He was slowly losing control himself. He had tried to be good, tried to make things as normal as possible for her, but she hardly knew how difficult it was for him. He had wanted to do this for a long time and his brain was losing out to his body. He pressed his hands on either side of her body, caging her in. One of her hands slipped up into his hair, combing through the blue. The sensation felt wonderful and nearly made him lose focus. He whispered in her ear.

"'Ow d'yew feel, love?" She slowly opened her eyes. Sitri was silent for now. The crazy was gone… it was replaced by a sheer lust that 2D did not think he would ever see directed at him.

"… more." She grabbed him and pulled his shirt up and over his head. 2D let it fall to the ground. He grinned when she nibbled at his lip and pressed herself against him. He allowed himself to be walked backwards and pushed onto the bed. Noodle straddled him and cupped his face in her hands.

"Yew sure though, love? I don' wanna force yew-"

"Just shut up and screw me." 2D felt himself twitch violently with lust at her words. A smile slowly crept to his face.

"Yes, ma'am." He wrapped his hands around her back and pulled her down on top of him. She got up suddenly, making 2D blink at the sudden lack of lips around his. She crossed her arms and lifted her shirt up by the hem. His eyes trailed the twitch and pull of various muscles in her upper body as she did this and groaned when she settled back down. Her fingers brushed his pectoral muscles and traced his abdominals. His fingers tangled in her hair and held her face to his, content to stay like this forever. She seemed to fit perfectly within the contours of his body. He wanted to stay here in his room and never leave. Never even move. Noodle however, had other ideas. She kissed her way down his throat and down his chest. He exhaled sharply and gripped the sheets with his hand. She scooted back until she was straddling his knees. She looked up at him with a feral grin that nearly made his heart stop.

In truth, Noodle hadn't expected it to go this far. She had merely been wanting some relief from her perils. However, 2D's lips had a strange effect on her. She wanted more, she wanted to feel his searing kiss all over. It simultaneously cleared and blurred her mind. When she pulled his shirt off in a haze of desire, she was reminded that 2D was not the skinny man of years past. She let her fingers dance over his rippling muscles and inwardly grinned that she could have such an effect on him as well. She wanted more of the singer. She made her way down his body and stopped when she was presented with a very pleasant view indeed. 2D was very clearly enjoying the attention and by the… looks of things, was quite willing to move forward. She smiled up at him and slowly reached for his belt buckle. As she undid his pants, she heard a low moan and looked up to see 2D gripping the sheets tightly in his hand. He was watching her movements with severe interest. She proceeded to drag his pants down and deposit them on the floor. Confronted with his boxers, she repeated the motion until the singer was naked in front of her. She had never given much thought to how… well endowed he was, but the evidence was undeniable. 2D was watching her carefully, not sure how she was going to proceed. He gasped as she surprised the hell out of him and took him into her mouth. He quickly realized that he was not going to last if he watched her so he cast his gaze up to the ceiling to try and hold out. When even this did not work, he shut his eyes tightly and muttered the lyrics to "Psycho Killer" to himself. When she trailed her finger up his thigh, he gasped in spite of himself. Noodle heard his gasp quickly turn into a light panting and a banging noise caused her to look up again. 2D had his fist clenched and smacked the wall in his haze. When he spoke, it was strained.

"Nood… Noodle… love, yeh gotta stop. I- yew aren't makin' 'is easy, are you?" Noodle slowly and deliberately got up and settled herself over him. She held her face just outside of his reach. His eyes were glazed over and frenzied with lust and wanting.

"Toochi… thank you for saving me." He looked at her curiously. She didn't answer, simply stared back into his dark depths. He mentally shrugged and reached up to kiss her. His arm reached around to cradle her back again. He slowly rolled over and pressed her into the bed. He used the hand still behind her back to unhook the bra she was still wearing. He brushed his fingers lightly across her chest as he put the bra on the floor to join his pants and their shirts. She shuddered and her eyes rolled back in her head slightly. He pushed her shorts down and took her panties with them, not wanting to waste more time. He kept his eyes trained on hers as he slipped a finger up to tease her in her most intimate spot. She arched her back and hissed at the contact, pressing into him. She clutched him tight as he worked her, frantically whispering things in his ear that made him go crazy with lust, while stroking the hairs at the back of his neck. She reached down with one hand and grabbed him, flicking her thumb over his tip and causing stars to appear in his eyes and his consciousness to fade momentarily. He was falling fast and he knew it. He didn't feel this desperate lust with any of the other women he had ever slept with, not even Paula or Rachel. He hadn't ever felt this longing desire to be close to them like he did with Noodle. It was different with her… and he was beginning to become addicted to it. She was on the verge of her climax when she whispered for him to speak to her, to say something to her. She was desperate for the sound of his voice amidst the moans and sighs that escaped the pair.

"I fink I love yew, Noods." He spoke in a low voice. Noodle looked up in shock and wonder before she arched her back into him, gasping his name. It was more the tone of his voice that sent her over the edge than what he said, although, her mind was still reeling from his admission. When her orgasm had passed she clutched him close again.

"Do it, 2D. I can't wait any more." 2D grinned tightly at this and positioned himself to unite with her. He nipped her neck lightly and slid in easily, ripping gasps from both her and him. He had been on edge all night and this was the sweet coda to his tribulation. Both lovers were covered in sweat and it mixed with the other's. 2D started moving, causing Noodle to reach up and claw down the wall in a fit of passion. The singer saw this and pinned her wrist to the wall, using his position to gain better leverage over the tiny guitarist. Noodle grinned up at him for a moment. Suddenly, 2D was very surprised to find himself flat on his back. He quit caring after he caught sight of Noodle riding him like a champ. He scooted up into a half-sitting position with some difficulty and propped himself up on one elbow. He used his other hand to curve around her hip and trace where he remembered the tattoo to be. She gripped his shoulders and threw her head back in ecstasy as another orgasm hit her. The Voice was entirely forgotten. All that mattered in the world was the two of them… together at last.

2D finally hit his climax, shortly followed by Noodle for the third time. Right before he dove off the edge, he reached up and pulled her down onto him, crashing his lips onto hers in a tangle of teeth and tongues. The shudders subsided eventually, but their mouths stayed connected for some time. When she finally pulled away, gasping for air, she laid her head on his chest. He paused to catch his own breath and wrapped a lanky arm around her middle.

"… sorry."

"Mmm? …don' apologize, love… I ain' complainin'." She smiled as she felt his words rumble through his chest as he spoke.

"I mean… sorry I attacked you like that." He chuckled, slightly out of breath still.

"Like I said, yew won' 'ear me complainin'." She smiled to herself and traced a design on the bare skin of his side. She listened to his heartbeat pound against his rib cage in a happy, soothing rhythm. "Why didja do it, though?" She looked up. The singer was steadily avoiding her gaze. Both knew their moment had been a brief instance of weakness on both their parts. Both were looking for a a reason to justify it now.

"I… can't tell you." She dragged herself off of the singer and stood up to retrieve her panties and shorts. She spied her bra tossed carelessly over a chair and stooped to pick it up. 2D scrambled up as well and struggled with his pants. As he fumbled with the zipper, he glared at Noodle.

"Wot the bloody 'ell do yew mean you can't tell me? I- we- did that mean _nofin_' to yew? Yew can tell me anyfin!" Noodle pulled her shirt on and spoke without turning around.

"You just wouldn't understand." Behind her, 2D was ready to implode. He kept his cool, however, and spoke in a deadly calm voice.

"So… we're righ' back where we started, ain't we? Yew kiss me, pin me to the wall… fuck me even… but yew can't tell me why." She whirled.

"I'm sorry if I can't talk about something that is still upsetting. I'm sorry I can't be as willing to share my secrets. And I didn't FUCK you…" she looked down, "I love you, but I don't deserve you" She turned again and made to go to the lift. She had almost made it when a solid hand grabbed her arm and spun her around. Noodle felt her back hit the still-closed door of the lift. She looked up to see 2D staring at her with a calm expression. She hadn't seen the look of pure elation and awe when she'd been turned around.

"Ok, so yew love me. It's not fucking, then. 'Making love' if tha's what yew wont to call it, the point is… if yew love me, why can't yew tell me wot's been boverin' yew? I'd want to know as yeh'r… boyfriend." Noodle's eyes grew as large as saucers. He was already labeling them? She belatedly realized that neither the Voice or Sitri had bothered them in quite a while. Noodle wasn't sure if sex was the answer or what… but she was willing to keep those wretched feelings of darkness away.

"Boyfriend?" He paled slightly.

"If tha's movin' too fast… well, I can' say I'd understand, but I won' protest." She shook her head and considered. He wanted her. He wanted her to belong to him. And he wanted to belong to her in return. Could it work? Would she regret it? …did she deserve it? Sex or not, she still was an employee of the Devil, if only former. If 2D knew, he would try to get away, he wouldn't want to mix in with her sort. She bowed her head and took his hand off of her arm. She wrapped her arms around his body, causing him to enfold her in return. A tear trickled down her cheek.

"I'm sorry…" She moved to turn away but he held firm.

"If yeh're tryin' to get upstairs by yehself, it's not 'appening. Yew just had a breakdown in the middle of me bedroom. Yew should stay here… where I can keep an eye on yew." He finished with a smirk. She sighed. She didn't want to hurt him by sticking around when she could not afford to love him, but she was tired of feeling alone and his presence seemed to keep the evil away from her. She also cringed at the idea of sleeping in her room with memories of that terrible possession still fresh in her mind.

"Alright… but none of that noble 'I'll take the floor' crap. If I'm staying here under your watch, I'm not sleeping by myself." 2D smiled gently and took her hand, squeezing it slightly.

"Awright, love. But only cos yew asked so nicely."

**See? Wasn't too terrible, was it? Review please!**


	8. El Mañana

**You know those chapters that are just terrible to write because their only purpose is to get to another part of the story? This is one. I hate it with the fiery passion of one thousand suns, but it is necessary to my brilliant story. So… we'll all just have to deal with it.**

**Disclaimer.**

Noodle slowly came to awareness the next morning in a content haze. She was pleasantly warm under 2D's blankets and she didn't remember the last time she had slept so well. 2D's arm was draped over her abdomen and she snuggled closer to the singer. Presently, said singer stirred slightly. His fingers contracted slightly on her side and she rolled over to look at him. He blearily opened one eye. When he saw the set of green eyes staring back at him, he opened his more fully.

"I actually awmost fought yew were gonna run outta 'ere before I woke up." He said sheepishly. She smirked.

"It wasn't a one-night stand. I know how used to those you are." He blushed and grinned.

"… but, you don't want to be with me." Her smile melted.

"I can't, Toochi." He nodded sadly and looked away, his arm still draped over her body. She searched his face, desperate for something that wouldn't make her feel so damn guilty. He looked up suddenly, his dark eyes swallowing her whole.

"Could yew tell me why, though? At least try? I promise that I'll listen real good. I won't fidget or anyfin, I promise." She giggled inwardly at his child-like expression. Outwardly, she sighed. The Voice was back. It was nowhere near at the power it was yesterday before the… well… yeah, but it was a faint but definite whisper in the back of her head. So, sex didn't cure her completely. She reached down and twined her fingers with his. He brought their hands up and kissed the back of her palm. She flushed and smiled.

"I suppose I could try. Fair warning though, it's not a pretty story and it's not easy to listen to. You're going to have to promise not to get mad." 2D looked up cautiously. What could have happened to her that made the story that bad? Nevertheless, he was more than thrilled to have her try to explain her reasoning. He quickly agreed to try and control his temper. She sighed again.

"Alright, let's get dressed and something to eat and we can take a walk by the beach and I'll tell you, ok?" He nodded and got up, reaching back to help her off the bed. 2D still hadn't put on his shirt from last night, so he was still standing in his jeans. Noodle was more covered, and had one of his old t-shirts over her thin camisole and shorts. They looked every inch the couple 2D wished so desperately they could be. Noodle started towards the door but was yanked back by the singer. Before she had time to register what was going on, his lips were on hers again. The kiss was short, but intense. Noodle saw stars when she was released. 2D smirked at her and gestured towards the door, still holding her hand.

"Fought yew were goin' upstairs, love?" She was still rather dazed. She shook her head and glared at him.

"Doesn't change anything, you know." He nodded at her.

"I know. I'm just exercising my right as the bloke you shagged last night." She flushed and tugged him to the lift with a muttered, "it wasn't shagging". 2D tried his hardest not to laugh at her remark.

Upstairs, the pair of quasi-lovers entered the kitchen to find it deserted. Noodle dropped his hand and looked around curiously before turning to 2D.

"Russel-san and Murdoc-san aren't avoiding me, are they? I feel like whenever I come around… they aren't anywhere." 2D shrugged.

"Dunno love. I'd be willing to bet they're just givin' yeh time to adjust. Murdoc's probably awready tol' Russ about yeh'r little fainting spell in the living room. And they don't know yew got outta yeh'r room las' night. I'd imagine they're probably hoping yew don't kill yehself." Noodle frowned at his teasing remark.

"I wouldn't have killed myself, Stuart."

"Ooh first names now, eh? Did I make yew angry? Why don't yew come ova here and tell me abou' it?" He smirked suggestively and cocked his finger in a 'come hither' fashion. Noodle rolled her eyes and strolled into the kitchen area, deliberately ignoring the singer. He followed, grinning. She went to the cupboard and rooted around until she found a canister of oatmeal. She wondered why Murdoc would have a can of it, he hated the stuff. She then realized she probably didn't want to know and put it back gingerly. She turned to find 2D staring at her, like he had previously the last time they were in the kitchen. She cleared her throat and watched his eyes slowly make their way up to her face, clearly enjoying the view. He threw her a leering grin, which for some reason, made her knees feel unstable.

"What is with you today, Toochi? First you kiss me, then you make the crack about me killing myself, and now-" 2D stuck his hands in his pockets and swaggered up. He stood close to her, Noodle was suddenly aware of how short she must seem, "you're… looking at me like… like you want to eat me…" She gulped. His lips lifted in a half-smile that exposed his gap. Noodle backed up, hitting the countertop. She had no where to run and this terrible, beautiful man was well aware of that fact.

"Can' say I know wot yeh'r talkin' about, love," he leaned closer to her, "Yew must be tired still…" Noodle felt the Voices jump and leer at her.

_"He's seducing you! He's hoping you'll succumb again!"_ Noodle shook her head and pushed him away, wincing when she felt the muscle of his abdomen. He allowed himself to be pushed and leaned against the opposite counter, smiling and biting his lip.

"If you don't behave yourself, you won't hear the story." He sighed dramatically.

"Ok, I'll be good." He pretended to pout, causing Noodle to smile. She knew he wanted her to actually reciprocate his affection, the Voices were just there to make her doubt herself. She figured that if she kept in control, and tried to assure herself that she was indeed cared for, the Voices would lose their influence over her. Noodle shuddered at the thought of having another breakdown like the one in her bedroom. She wasn't sure if 2D's nerves could handle that either. The singer watched her struggle with her indecision a moment longer before turning to the fridge and swinging open the door. He ducked his head and emerged with a carton of eggs and a package of shredded cheese. He set his ingredients on the counter and rummaged around in another cupboard until he came up with a pan. Noodle looked at him curiously.

"2D… you don't eat eggs." He smiled and looked up at her.

"I know tha'. But yew do, dontcha?" His face became worried, "What can I make yew that yew'll eat?" Noodle shook her head. She didn't understand why he was being so protective and flirty and… acting like a boyfriend. She sighed.

"2D, you don't have to cook for me. I didn't even knew you knew how to cook." His grin widened.

"Ah cos I know 'ow to cook, love. Do yew fink Muds or I woulda survived very long wiffout Russel if neither of us learned to cook?" Noodle made a noise of agreement and leaned against the counter to watch him work. He whistled while he did and soon had a fluffy, hot cheese omelette on a plate, which he set on the table and looked at Noodle pointedly. She grabbed a knife and fork out of the drawer and sat down, feeling like a child. 2D quickly made himself a bowl of sugary cereal and sat down opposite her. She cut a small piece of her omelette and put it in her mouth. Noodle was simultaneously surprised and unsurprised that it tasted wonderful. He did everything else wonderfully, why should cooking go any different. 2D was watching her as she took the first bite. She looked up then and noticed his scrutiny.

"Well… 'ow is it?" She swallowed and smiled.

"Wonderful, of course Toochi." He beamed and dug into his cereal.

After the dishes had been dumped rather unceremoniously in the sink, 2D grabbed Noodle's hand and led her outside. She and the singer used to walk hand in hand all the time, it had never bothered her… but this time it felt different. Like their point of contact actually meant something now. Noodle mentally snorted. She didn't know why she was being so melodramatic, she _had_ slept with him last night. That entitled him to a certain list of new privileges. Privileges that she wanted very badly to endorse, but could not against her conscience.

The pair strolled out near the water's edge, Noodle watched the waves crash onto the shore and drag whatever bits of trash it could find back out to sea. It was hard to believe she had only been on the island for a week, Noodle felt like she knew this place inside and out. 2D seemed to be heading somewhere in particular. When asked, he pointed with their interlocked hands ahead at a small hill.

"Fought we could go sit on Melancholy Hill and talk, yeah?" She nodded her acquiescence and pondered something.

"2D, did you name the hill or the song first?" 2D looked around.

"Eh? Well, I wos sittin' up on that hill one of the first days I got here and I was just sittin'… yeh know, lookin' out to the sea… and I just pictured a scene from a movie. A 'appy one, yeh know. And then I fought… this is actually quite a gloomy place, see? And the word 'melancholy' suddenly popped into my 'ead. It wos trippy, love. 'Ave yew- yew've listened frew the album, 'avent yew?" Noodle shook her head. She hadn't remembered to grab a computer when she was packing for her trip and she hadn't had a chance to listen through it yet. "Well, remind me to put it in when we get back, ok?" He finished rather awkwardly. They had arrived at the small hill. Noodle sat on the plastic grass and patted the spot beside her. She stared out at the waves and so did he. They weren't touching, Noodle was sitting cross-legged and 2D had one leg tucked up to his chest and the other hanging off the side of the cliff. For a moment they sat in silence, watching the water and the clouds that were being dragged in by the sky. He was waiting for her to start. Noodle sighed and looked down.

"I don't really know where to begin." The spell broke and 2D reached for Noodle's hand, entwining their hands on the ground. A slight chill had crept upon them and Noodle appreciated the warmth of his hand around hers.

"Start after yew got to the ground… start _after_ El Mañana, i don' wanna fink about that any more'n I 'afta." Noodle stared at the ground.

"I packed my bags and went to the Maldives." 2D was confused as to why that would prohibit a relationship between the two of them. He waited for her to continue. "It was beautiful there… beaches and palm trees. I actually had time to work I my tan… even if it was short-lived." He smiled momentarily and then the grin faded into a line.

"Why did yew leave us to go on vacation?" She looked up at him. 2D's expression was morose, his eyes were questioning hers. She hesitated and looked down.

"I had to get away for awhile, Toochi. I didn't think I was cut out for this kind of life." He squeezed her hand.

"Do yew still fink so?" Her frown stretched, turning into a small smirk.

"I think I belong here with you and Russel and Murdoc." Noodle was surprised at how right the words felt. She didn't feel cut in half anymore. She was home with her family. Nothing the Devil could say or do would change that feeling.

"Did anyfin… 'appen there?"

"I got a tattoo… and I tried smoking a cigarette." 2D was momentarily distracted.

"I don't believe yew. I fought yew 'ated when I smoked, why would yew try it?" Noodle grinned up mischievously at him.

_"Because_ you like it, 2D. I had to try at least once." His mouth spread in a half-smile as her gaze turned to a whale surfacing far in the distance. 2D stared at the whale, feeling disgust at the whale, but keeping it hidden. Noodle smoking. This was something he'd like to see someday. He mentally smacked himself. 'Later! She's still talking!'

-way, I was sitting in my hotel room. I missed all of you very much and I was contemplating going home early. And then…" Noodle choked off. 2D turned to look down at her. She had suddenly stopped and it looked like she was even hesitating to breathe.

"… Noods?" He nudged her lightly. She seemed to come back to herself and her eyes cleared. Whatever she was going to say clearly still brought her much pain. She took a deep breath.

"… and then, the demons came."

**Ooh, ominous… I'm not even sure I would want you to review this… but they're kind of my heroin. Feed my addiction!**

P.S. Did you get my title? El Mañana = the morning? It's the morning after? Haha yes… this is why I'm broke.


	9. Retribution

**Oh hey there. Not gonna lie, this chapter was fun to write. Hope you have as much fun reading it! **

******Disclaimer**

It was painful… telling 2D her story. Painful not only reliving it, but having to watch the anguish that built up on the blue-haired singer's face as she continued. She started with her time in Hell. She told him of the deal she had originally struck with Satan, saving Murdoc and the band. She described the demons that plagued her and the horrors she was forced to endure. The hand that wasn't entwined with hers clenched into a fist every time Noodle mentioned a beating or injury she had received, which was often. She tried not to look at him too often. Whenever she did, he was either staring out into the surf with an angry expression or staring at the ground between them. It was not an easy story to listen to. She then told him in whispered tones about the torture, the endless torture. Haltingly, Noodle described the horror of having to watch each of her bandmates die terrible deaths several times a day. She added that his death was the most frequent and often, the hardest to watch. He exhaled loudly but traced soft circles on the back of her hand with his rough thumb. When she was finally finished, she lapsed into silence and cautiously waited for his response. What would he say? What would he do?

2D couldn't believe what he was hearing. What had started out as a semi-flirtatious retelling of her days on vacation had turned into Noodle hunched into herself and leaning into his side, nearly in tears. If what she was saying was true, Noodle had _not_ been on vacation at all. The singer stared out onto the horizon with his arm now slung around her shoulders, mouth slightly agape. Noodle swiped at her eyes and looked up at him.

"2D? Will you please look at me?" He started and glanced down at the guitarist. She reached up and cradled his cheek, causing him to lean into her touch.

"Yew… they really did hurt yew down there… didn' they? Tha's why yew 'ad so many bruises awl ova yew." She nodded shakily. She knew she had to tell him another, potentially more frightening thing as well. He shifted towards her and placed his hands on either side of her face and swept his rough thumb under her eye, drying the tears. "Love… I don' really know wha' to say, but-" He exhaled sharply and looked down, "I promise… I will never let anythin' like tha' 'appen again." She drew back from his embrace. He searched her face.

"That's the other thing, 2D. You're probably wondering how I got out of Hell, aren't you?" He nodded viciously. She took a deep breath and took one of his hands in her own. "Now… if I tell you this, I will completely understand if you take off and do not wish to speak to me again." He raised and eyebrow doubtfully but Noodle pressed on.

"Satan let me out… with a job to do. It was him that told me you were overdosing on the pills. I was sent to stop you from… from killing yourself." 2D's other eyebrow rose.

"But I wasn't on me pills, love. Were yew- d'yew 'afta go _back_ to tha' awful place?" She kept her gaze on their hands and shrugged. "Wull tha' doesn't seem s'bad, love. Why on earff would I 'ate yew fer tryin' to save me?" She winced.

"Because now I hear voices that tell me to kill you and Russel and Murdoc." She said this very fast and in one breath. She heard 2D's breath exit his body in a huff. She screwed her eyes shut, not wanting to chance a look upwards. He was going to hate her forever now, she was certain of it. The Voice chuckled softly, as if to confirm her theory. He withdrew his hand from hers. Noodle felt a tear slide down her cheek. He was going to get up and walk away. She simultaneously felt glad she had told him and cursed her stupidity for opening herself to such wounds. To her surprise, he spoke. His voice was careful and controlled. Emotion boiled underneath his words but she couldn't quite tell what that emotion was.

"'Ow long 'ave these voices been goin' on?"

"Few days now. They were excruciating yesterday afternoon. But they got better after we…" She trailed off. She hated reminding him that they were sort of connected now. She felt terribly guilty for pulling him into this mess.

"Wot do they tell yew?"

"They tell me… terrible things."

"Like…? Wot do they tell yew?" She swallowed and dug her fingers into the plastic grass. 2D was in pain as well. The girl in front of him was putting herself in so much stress and worry over how he would react. She had clearly been warring with herself over how to tell him and it had very obviously been eating away at her. True, he was still very much in shock… but he could never hate her.

"They tell me that… you and Russel and Murdoc don't… want me here. That I should… hand you over to the Devil." He scratched the back of his head. Poor girl had probably been going mental all alone in her room cooped up with those thoughts running around her head.

"And… tha's why yew don' wont to be wiv me?" She leaned away from him and wrapped her arms more fully around her knees.

"I- I can't, Toochi. You don't deserve to have to deal with this. I'm not… I'm not all here." He was silent for a moment, contemplating her sanity. Did she honestly believe he would let her get away that easily?

"'Ave yew figured out 'ow to stop them?" She blushed.

"As far as I can figure, they seem to quiet down when we- when you're touching me." There was no response. She was almost certain he was gone now, disgusted by her and her insanity. She hesitantly opened an eye before she was very suddenly lying flat on her back. Her eyes popped open. The singer was hovering over her and gazing down at her. She knew she could easily get up if she wanted to, but for some strange reason, she couldn't find the motivation to do anything but lie there underneath him…

"Now yew listen to me and yew listen good, love. We all love 'aving yew around. Hell, I was never 'appier in me life than when I saw yew standin' there on the beach. I don' care if yew're awl covered in bruises or wot. I don' care if yew still hear voices from that terrible place, yew're still the damn most perfect girl I've ever met. I love yew and yew told me yehself tha' yew love me too. The only thing holding us back is yew, Noodle." He seemed to run out of steam then, the anger gone from his eyes. Noodle found herself rather breathless from his tirade. She hadn't realized how hard he would be willing to fight for this. He didn't move off of her, he simply stayed there and gazed into her eyes before softly saying,

"Yew say these voices go away when I touch yew, yeah?" She nodded carefully. The Voice seemed to sense that it was about to get forced out and started protesting violently. Noodle saw her vision swim slightly. 2D smirked down at her. He leaned down and Noodle seemed to see it in slow motion. Her racing thoughts came to a screeching halt when their lips touched. He pressed her into the grass and dove into her mouth. This kiss was pure fire and passion. She reached up and wound her hands into his hair and pulled him closer, unable to get enough of him. Why she had been denying herself this for so long, she would never know. If she had known how quickly and willingly she would get addicted to his touch, she would have jumped him _ages_ ago. The voice fought again for control, scratching at the edge of her consciousness. She decided to take 2D for his word. He didn't care that she was damaged, he didn't even care that she was being told by a demonic voice to kill/betray her best friends, he only wanted her. He was willing to stay past the crazy. With that, she gave an almighty shove to where she felt the Voice was and shouted in her head,

"I love this boy. I am not hiding any more." For a frightening second, the Voice screeched. Noodle pulled away, as did 2D with a very dopey expression. The high sound lasted for a few seconds more and faded quickly. Instead of the usual distant hum that would usually occupy her head after the Voice's brief muting… there was silence. The only one in her head… was her. Well, that and some very intriguing images of the singer spread out on a bed for her own purposes…

She glanced up at 2D with a grin. His expression made her laugh. He looked like he had simultaneously been woken up from a deep sleep and had his favorite toy taken away.

"They're gone. I can't hear them anymore." 2D cracked a grin.

"Tha's great, love! Now… d'yew mind if we continue what we had there? I wos rather enjoyin' tha'." Noodle smirked at him and pulled him down on top of her again, earning a satisfied grunt from the singer.

…

Demons ran in every direction, some calling out orders, most scurrying away in terror. Every so often, a fireball would light up a darkened passageway, making bystanders hop and yelp in fear. It was never a good day when Satan was angry… and today he had a very good reason to be angry. Most of the underlings knew what had the Devil's tail in a twist, he had lost another soul. A pair of demons, new recruits, stood near the entrance of the main cell block. This particular pair of demons were not very bright, and had a glaring tendency to show it. As part of their training, all new recruits were required to learn the demon language, lest a prisoner discover any plans for their disposal. The pair, Char'nold and Rhus'ia, were either unaware of this rule or were just blatantly ignoring it and were busy chatting up one of the prisoners.

"-dunno if he even knows what he's doin'." Rhus'ia complained to the prisoner, a haggled looking man with a balding head. The man nodded solemnly and spoke in a raspy voice.

"It's all the same with bosses, mate. Not a single one of 'em really knows what they're doing. And they won't take your advice." The demons nodded. Char'nold piped up with an obvious American Southern drawl.

"What about you, Baldy? What boss done you wrong?" The bald man sighed. He really hated it down here. It was just his luck to get trapped in a sinking ship and get imprisoned in this hell hole. The idiotic guards he was usually assigned made up for it a bit though.

"My boss was a young lady. I assumed she knew what she was doing when she insisted we take her to some island. But then these blasted pirates attacked the ship. I tried to save her- believe me, I did! -but she wouldn't listen to me, of course. I'm- er, I WAS just the butler." The two demons snorted and laughed with the bald man.

Satan was in a very foul mood indeed. The girl, Noodle, had somehow worked her way out of his command. He didn't know how she did it. He was determined to find her and take her again, he had underestimated her. But where was she? His floating orb on the desk could only give him a picture of the girl, not her surroundings. If she would look at something to serve as a landmark, perhaps he could do something, but wherever she was… there was nothing. No major land forms, no strange rock formations, she didn't even look up at the stars enough for him to be able to plot her location that way. It was very frustrating. Satan grew weary of his study and strolled off into the hallway, intent on terrorizing the new cadet on C deck. Out in the gloomy hallway, Satan grinned maliciously at a slouching guard and shot a fireball his way. The sizzle and resounding yelp told him the fireball had found its mark.

Satan put his hands together behind his back and stared at the ground as he walked. The girl had defeated him… what did that mean? Was he losing his touch? Or was the brat just really good at exorcisms? He was much more inclined to believe the latter rather than think there was something off about him. He glared upwards. Or had she had a load of help from above?

"That'd be just like You, wouldn't it?" He snarled at the ceiling. It was a shame that he had lost another lieutenant in this mess, too. The Devil had decided that he really did like Sitri as his second in command. The demon would be missed. That was the funny thing about being directly employed by the Devil. When you died, or more likely, were exorcised, you didn't get sent straight back to Hell. You went to that strange place that even Satan himself did not know about.

On.

Satan gritted his teeth. Perhaps if the girl was still under his control, he would have at least been able to send her on. Anywhere but that dreaded place above. He rounded the corner and saw two underlings standing casually in front of a cell. A low growl slipped from between Satan's teeth. He had a strict rule prohibiting the guards from speaking to the prisoners. He wanted his prisoners to feel isolated and abandoned. To feel like they had been kicked out of a place they found familiar and comforting. Satan was about to let Hell's fury break lose until he caught a snatch of their conversation.

"So, you say you knew the girl they're all after?" The thin balding man in the cell nodded wearily.

"Said she was headed to an island of sorts…" Satan's interest was suddenly piqued. Was this dolt in a cell able to be trusted? Did he really know where the girl was?

"Say, er… didja happen to find out where the island was?" The Devil's head whipped around. Here he could get all of his answers! And he didn't even have to torch someone! Again, the old man nodded, a bit more hesitantly this time.

"Well? Let's have it!" The nearest guard got right in the man's face. The man visibly paled from his proximity and backed away.

"I don't know…" Satan clapped a hand to his temple. His employees showed so much idiocy he wasn't quite sure how they functioned. He casually strolled out from where he had been listening.

"Well well well, what have we here? Conversing with the prisoner?" He tutted at the startled guards who had the decency to start quivering in fear, "That won't do… not at all. You both should… leave." He motioned for them to pass. Te pair tripped over themselves to leave his presence. Satan looked back at the man in the cell. This soul would be tough to break, he had a strong spirit. The man opened his mouth to speak, but was silenced by a wave of the Devil's finger.

"Please, just a moment." He turned and exhaled softly. He pointed at the still-retreating figures of the two guards and lightning struck them where they stood. Two smoldering piles of ash lay pathetically where two dunderheads had once stood. Satan casually turned back to the cell. The man was spooked now. He stood shaking slightly as he gazed at the Devil's boots, not quite able to meet his eyes.

"Evening… now, did I happen to hear you say something about a girl I'm after?" The man shakily nodded, his gaze flicked up briefly before returning to the ground.

"Excellent. And, er… where might I find the girl?" The man slowly looked up and glared at Satan.

"Why would I tell you that? You're gonna do something terrible to her and kill me." A small grin entered Satan's features. He leaned down slightly to level with the man. He flashed a mouthful of pointy teeth, making the man shudder violently.

"Are you a deal-making kind of man, Prisoner 27194?"

**Review, please!**


	10. Discovery

**So… I just sort of realized that Murdoc and Russel haven't been a big part of my glorious little story here so… I wrote them in a little piece. Enjoy!**

Murdoc was tired of his possessions getting damaged. Every time he turned around, something of his was broken and needed fixing. First it was that bloody sink… the sodding thing had sprung a leak at the base of the pipe, which required the entire pipe to be taken out. The bassist had been scraping muck off of his boots for weeks. Then it was one of the pieces of the recording equipment. Actually… he _still_ didn't know what the hell was wrong with it, he just knew that it squinked when it should have squonked and hipped when it should have hopped. Murdoc laid back in his plastic lawn chair and sighed. The privacy was nice, no intruding members of the paparazzi or annoying fans… but the downside was that he really was alone out here. The pizza companies wouldn't even deliver out here, no matter how much he begged and threatened. There was no one to fix things either. Murdoc was on his own when his sink and recording equipment tried to retaliate. No one to fix the sodding robot either…

Granted, getting a hole blown in one's head tends to set one a bit loopy, but this was just getting ridiculous. Cyborg-Noodle was currently hooked up to her charging equipment simply because Murdoc didn't know what else to do with her. She wouldn't speak and when she did, the sentences were garbled and unintelligible. Murdoc was no robot brain surgeon, so he was invariably stumped.

The bassist was enjoying the seemingly ever-present sunshine on his deck in the mid-morning. His bottle of vodka sat nearby and his trusty bass sat near the house, looking on with the casual observance one might have of a lover or close friend. He knew he probably _should_ get up and try to fix the cyborg, it's not like there was anything to do now that the album had been released. He could work on new material… no, he wanted a break from his broken recording equipment. He could wash the dishes… no, he didn't want to deal with the broken sink. Murdoc snorted, did he even know how to do the dishes? He scratched his belly and stared contently out onto the beach. It was a pretty place out here, Murdoc had never quite realized the beauty of trash until it was assembled into something he could live off of.

Out on the beach, the birds were playing in the surf. He heard squawks as they frolicked around. He gazed around his empire like a proud king. He wasn't sure if he ever wanted to leave to be honest. Why leave when you had it all right here? And now his band was assembled here as well. He had missed Russel severely, even if he hadn't wanted to show it. The drummer was easily considered his best friend in the band. And Noodle. He nearly had a heart attack when she stepped out of Russel's hand. True, she looked battered and worn and Murdoc wasn't exactly sure what had happened to her, but it was a relief to see she was alive after going missing. He still wondered from time to time if maybe, after all this time, she really had gone to Hell. He hated to think of what they to her did there and he would despise himself even more if she had been there and he had been unable to find her. He was still trying to convince himself that going to search for her had not been a dream. It helped him rest a bit easier if he could believe he actually tried to find her. It made him feel much better to just pretend she hadn't been there at all.

But, how else would she have gotten so beaten up? When she had showed off her bruise, and every other time he caught sight of the bruise, he felt a churning sensation in his stomach. Someone had injured the girl these three poor bastards held up on a pedestal. No one hurt Noodle. No one even touched Noodle without her say so and unbounded pain waited for the rotter who dared mess with her. Murdoc shuddered as he remembered the blood running down her wrist the other day. He hoped to Satan… God… whoever was listening, that she hadn't done it to herself and that he hadn't walked in on her suicide attempt. It was bad enough not knowing that she could have been dead, but if she was… and Murdoc could consider some of the blame to be his…

He wasn't sure if he could ever sleep again.

Murdoc heaved himself out of his chair and leaned on the railing of his balcony. He swept his gaze past the birds and looked out to where the lighthouse poked the sky. He saw the little hillock that the dullard had stupidly dubbed 'Melancholy Hill'. Murdoc snorted, 'what a pansy' he thought. He noticed two figures sitting on top of the hill, letting their legs swing down off the edge of the cliff. He looked harder at them and saw the flash of blue that designated the taller figure to be none other than 2D. He had his arm wrapped around a smaller figure at his side. By the mess of purple/black hair, he assumed the second figure to be Noodle. He watched them disdainfully for awhile. He wasn't sure if he liked them being together. He knew Noodle was an alright girl, but he wasn't sure if anyone, not even his own bandmate, would be good enough for her. Besides, he knew the singer's past better than anyone. Murdoc watched as Noodle seemed to lean away from him and put her hands to her face. Murdoc straightened up, what was wrong with her? His eyes widened almost comically as 2D suddenly pushed her to the ground and settled over her. Murdoc's grip tightened on the railing, what the hell did that dullard think he was doing? He never thought the singer would be stupid enough to try and rape his own bandmate. In a fury that had him growling, Murdoc pushed away from the railing and bolted to the lift, jabbing the button repeatedly with his long finger. After an impatient ride to the entrance of the house, he stumbled out and nearly tripped over his own feet as he kicked up sand. When he found Russel sitting on the far beach, watching the ocean, he was breathless and had to rest his hands on his knees to catch his breath. The drummer turned around in surprise.

"Man, whatchu doin'? Ya look like you've just seen a murder." Murdoc glared up at him.

"Pretty damn close, mate. Pretty damn close. We're gonna 'afta stage a murder after what I saw." As Murdoc explained what he had saw with Noodle and Murdoc, the drummer's eyes grew larger. His expression changed to that of fury and blind rage. He got up, standing a massive fifteen feet tall and looked down at the bassist who suddenly felt very short and tiny.

"He's a dead man. Where is he, Muds? I want him."

When the two finally pulled away from each other, both were fighting to catch their breath. 2D rolled over to the side so he could lay by her. He reached down and tangled their fingers as they looked up at the sky.

"I'll give you one thing, Toochi. You are fairly adept at kissing." 2D grinned and turned his head to look at her.

"Yew too, love. Matter a fact, where didja learn to kiss like tha'?" Noodle grinned mischievously at him.

"I told you I did some crazy things in the Maldives." 2D let the grin play lazily across his face and settled back to watch the clouds.

"Is tha' 'ow yew planned on saving me from my nasty drug addiction? Replace my pills wiff yeh'r mouff?" 2D teased her lightheartedly. Noodle chuckled and reached in her pocket. The blue vial was still there, she had put it in her shorts and she was thankful Sitri hadn't decided to break it. She still thought it could be useful. Noodle showed the vial to the singer.

"This was actually supposed to save you. I'm not exactly sure what it does, but I was told it was supposed to wake you up out of your drug-induced stupor." Noodle ribbed him gently with a smile. The pair lapsed back into a comfortable silence, content to lie together.

"Toochi, do you ever think about… what comes after this?" 2D looked around at her again.

"After this, love? I plan to take yew back up to the house and spread yew across me bed and- "

"Not like that, 2D-kun. I mean, like… after this. After life." 2D blinked.

"Eh… not really, I guess. I'm just sorta 'opin' I get frew this life awright… wot do yew fink's gonna 'appen?" Noodle shrugged.

"Sometimes I just wonder where I'm going to end up. Sometimes… I'm just not sure." 2D raised an eyebrow.

"Noodle, love- yew are one o' the purest people I know. I'd letcha into 'eaven for sure. And if God won't… forget Him, we can make it a party with Murdoc down below."

"Toochi, what makes you so certain you won't make it to heaven either? You're a good person." 2D smiled sadly.

"Not me, love. I've broken too many rules in my old age." His lips twisted up at the last part of the sentence. A voice sounded behind the pair, making them sit up suddenly.

"Think you've just broken anotha rule, mate." Murdoc was glowering at the singer with Russel close behind, looking murderous. 2D sat up more fully.

"Oh hey guys, wos goin' on?" Murdoc grimaced at him and slouched over to where the pair was on the ground. He held his hand out to help Noodle up. When she was standing, she looked at the bassist and her father figure with a very confused expression. She yelped when Murdoc put his hands on her arms and forcibly steered her away from her lover and over to where Russel stood. The two men both glared at 2D without saying anything. He held up his hands in surrender.

"Ok, I give. Wot did I do now?" Noodle looked at the singer with panic and wondering. She didn't know what was going on. Murdoc sneered at the singer and spoke.

"Like yeh don't know. Yeh're lucky Lards and I don't feed yeh to tha' whale." 2D paled visibly and glanced at Noodle. She shrugged under Murdoc's grip. Russel's voice boomed from above.

"Muds says he saw ya attack Noodle-girl." He too glared at the singer. Noodle's mouth fell open and 2D bolted upright.

"Wot the bloody 'ell does 'at mean? I wouldn' ever do a fing like tha'!" He scrambled up from the ground and angrily waved his arms in Murdoc's face. "Yew know I wouldn' do tha'! I love her, why would I-" Murdoc knocked him to the ground with his fist. He cracked his knuckles and glared menacingly at the singer sprawled on the ground. Noodle had a horrible moment when she remembered a scene that went just like this with a certain guitarist on the ground.

"Don't be an arse about this, Two Dents. Yeh're lucky we don't rip yeh'r 'ead off." Noodle's eyes narrowed angrily.

"Sutoppu! What is going on?" The three men glanced at the small guitarist, as if just realizing she was still there. Noodle wrenched herself from the bassist's grasp and walked over to where 2D was still on the ground. She helped him up and glared back at Murdoc.

"Murdoc-san, what is wrong? Did something happen that you have to push him around?" Murdoc swelled up like a balloon.

"Did something ha- I SAW HIM PUSH YOU TO THE GROUND AND LAND ON TOP OF YOU!" Russel growled in response. Noodle looked to 2D with a panicked expression. The singer's features matched her own. They weren't quite ready to tell their bandmates about their new relationship status. However, it seemed they had no choice. After a silent conversation between the two lovers, Noodle looked back at Russel and Murdoc with her face aflame with embarrassment.

"Russel-san… Murdoc-san… what you saw was completely consensual and was not what you think it was." Murdoc's face turned to surprise. Russel slowly sank to his knees, which still had the ground beneath the four shaking tumultuously. The drummer was the first to speak.

"So… you and 'D are… _together_?" Noodle nodded with a slight smile. She reached over and took the singer's hand, 2D squeezed it gently. Noodle chanced a look at Murdoc. His face was still a comical mask of surprise. Noodle called his name, which seemed to bring him back to the present. He quickly screwed his expression into one of stern disapproval.

"I guess there's… nothing I can do about this, is there?" Noodle and 2D both shook their heads happily. Murdoc scowled. He looked up at Russel.

"Wot do you think about all this, Lards?" The three bandmates heard a loud sigh that sounded very much like a small windstorm.

"Well… I suppose there is no stopping her if she's made up her mind. Are you sure, baby-girl?" Noodle nodded slowly.

"Yes, Russel-sama. I love 2D-kun and… I know he loves me in return." Noodle saw the singer grin at the ground out of the corner of her eye. Russel ran a hand over his bald head. Murdoc scoffed lightly and crossed his arms. The drummer nudged Murdoc, causing him to stumble.

"Alright baby-girl. I guess if you think it's a good idea. But…" Russel pointed a large finger at the terrified singer, "If you hurt her or anything-" Murdoc jumped in.

"If yeh're as much of a tosser as I thought and you lay a hand on her, yeh better start diggin' yeh'r own grave. Cos when I get through with you, death is gonna seem merciful." 2D winced and Noodle chuckled and rolled her eyes. She stepped forward, still holding 2D's hand, and grabbed Murdoc's as well. She unwittingly handed him her scarred wrist. The bassist ran his other thumb over the scars and raised an eyebrow. Noodle flushed and dragged her two bandmates behind her as Russel followed the three to the main house.

…

The minions knew something was up. The air felt different, more electric. The lower-ranking officers watched from their perches as their boss stormed around the place with a maniac grin on his features. Satan still didn't have a new lieutenant, he was still slightly mourning the loss of Sitri, but he had a new plan. And he rather liked this plan. The head of one of the battalions overheard his mutterings as he passed one of the numerous studies scattered about the place. This demon, Raglaw, stepped into the study.

"-so brilliant… might actually work this ti-" Major Raglaw cleared his throat. Satan looked around and Raglaw saw a brief flash of incoherency pass over the man's features. Satan straightened up and offered a nod to the major. "I wasn't expecting you, Major. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Sir, I have heard rumors…" The Devil cocked an eyebrow, gesturing for Raglaw to continue. "They, my sources, tell me that a new plan for the girl's soul is underway. I was wondering if I should ready the troops." Satan stepped forward, eyes flashing slightly. Raglaw felt an instinctive quiver of fear that centuries of service could never quite alleviate.

"Who is your source, Raglaw? I have not told anyone of your rank that would relay that information to you." Raglaw shook his head.

"Again, sir, it was only a rumor. I do not have the names or ranks of the officers, only the information I heard in passing." Satan nodded thoughtfully.

"Well, I suppose it would not hurt to tell someone my wonderful plan. But not now… soon. I don't think I will need the troops just yet, Major. My plan is tailored to ensure my will is not compromised by the stupidity that your men so often display." Raglaw nodded, jaw set. He knew his men could act like morons most of the time, but having his boss point it out was a tad embarrassing. Satan turned back to his desk. Major Raglaw began to say something, but shut his mouth quickly.

"Go ahead, Major. What were you going to say? You have permission to speak." Satan said without turning. Raglaw sighed and tentatively spoke.

"Sir… permit me, but why are you trying so hard to get this girl's soul? She is one of six million souls on the planet, why her soul? I don't even remember such a fuss when we were going after that Mother Teresa's soul." Satan snorted.

"Yes, well, _that_ was a lost cause before we started. And I should have realized how set she was in her ways. I don't know, Raglaw. Quite frankly… I feel like I'm losing my edge down here. I just feel like," Satan shut his eyes, he wasn't used to bearing his intentions like this, "I just feel like if I can get her soul, I still have that…_something_. I suppose you could compare it to the mortal phenomenon called a "midlife crisis", though I am nowhere near middle-aged." Major Raglaw nodded.

"So… I shall _not_ ready the troops then?" Satan shook his head.

"No offense to your command, Major, but I don't need your men mucking up the situation." Raglaw bowed and exited the study, leaving the Devil to his twisted thoughts. He was nearly ready to put his plan into action.

**So much drama! Hahaha! Enjoy, my duckies! Please, do me a favor and review!**


	11. Laying in Wait

**Gah! This chapter is so long! But I had so many wonderful, wonderful thoughts racing through my head. Apologies in advance are due on account of the fluffiness. Sorry if it's too much to handle...**

**Disclaimer**

Trees flew by as Satan raced through the English countryside. He wasn't quite sure where he was, he supposed it was somewhere over Bristol. He knew his destination, though. The balding man had told him approximately where he needed to go in exchange for Satan sparing his life. Satan was ecstatic to finally have some information to go off of, rather than his stupid crystal orb that had never worked… salesmen bothered even the Prince of the Underworld.

Presently, he was gliding over the clouds, racing against the very wind that dared challenge him. He had forgotten how nice the world was… and so very chilly. Compared to the dank heat of his usual home, this air felt clean and cool… strange. Satan glanced upwards nervously, he technically wasn't allowed above ground, but who was he if not a bit of a rabble-rouser? He just hoped he wasn't caught and forced below ground before he could complete his objective. Satan wondered if the air felt this nice when Sitri had tried to find the girl. It was unfortunate that Sitri had never gotten around to revealing his location before he was destroyed. He swerved to avoid a steeple and sneered at the sheer irony of his flying over. He closed his eyes and focused within himself, pulling up a link of communication to his home. Major Raglaw's voice soon sounded in his head as a sign that the link had been successfully established.

"Sir? Is there anything you need? Coordinates? Directions?"

"Raglaw. I am simply calling to alert you to my position. I am passing over England as we speak. Make the others aware."

"Right, sir… Sir?" Satan heaved a sigh.

"Yes, Raglaw?"

"One of the generals has arrived, he said he had orders to look over things while you were away." Satan's eyes widened, much like those of a cat entranced by a mouse would. He had given no orders for anyone to take over for him while he was away on business.

"Which general, Major? Is it Scalen? He always looked a bit shifty."

"It's not Scalen, sir. To be honest, I've never seen him. But he has all the tags and his ID checks out.

"Hmm. That is very interesting, Major. I'm going to… let you handle this in whatever way you see fit. Do me a favor and get creative while I'm busy, understand?" On the other side, Raglaw sighed and turned towards the so-called general the palace guards had held between them.

"Yes… sir." Satan disconnected the call and continued his journey. Raglaw rubbed his bald patch and stared at the ground. He wasn't sure what made him join the ranks here in Hell. He just knew that he didn't care much for the stress that came with his position. The palace guards were waiting for his command. The imposter in between them glared condescendingly up at the major. To be a palace guard was a curious position. They didn't actually guard Satan himself, but the palace. They were charged with keeping the contents safe. Often, they went days without seeing the master of the palace for they were too busy trying to keep the hoards of prisoners from demolishing the place trying to get in. One of the offenders was caught now.

"Has he told you to throw me in the dungeons? Maybe string me up on the rafters by my thumbs?" Raglaw threw a warning glance over his shoulder at the man in general's attire before turning away.

"You shall not underestimate the power of Satan, Prince of Darkness." The prisoner snorted.

"And I suppose you want me to bow down?"

"I want you to show some respect!" Raglaw whirled. "Who are you to underestimate Satan? Who are you?" The prisoner smirked and exposed the gap that had been made when one of the guards knocked out a tooth. He remained silent.

"Answer me." No words yet. "Prisoner! You are ordered to speak, who are you?" The major's hand raised in fury and he slapped the prisoner across the face. The prisoner started laughing in a maniacal fashion, much to the major's chagrin. When the man had calmed down enough, he spread his arms to either side.

"I am Satan, king of the underworld! Bow before my awesome power!" The laughter started again. Raglaw snapped and drove the prisoner against the wall, pinning him by his throat.

"You will pay for your insolence!"

"Major, please! I am Satan's most humble servant. I am his most devout follower. How would he react if you injured his one faithful ally?" Raglaw released him. The man was clearly insane, driven to insanity and delusions by the promise of grandeur. He seemed to switch between two personas.

"How long have you been here?"

"I have been here for centuries. With my master gone, someone needed to take over and carry on his rich ideals. And who better than the one who knows his methods? No, no- wait! You- you can help me, Major! You know him as well as I, we are both military men. We could make ourselves the most prided servants in the underworld." Raglaw backed away. Was this what waited for him if he stayed here forever?

"What is your name?"

"You would know me as General Darking of the Third Battalion." Raglaw remembered now, Darking was a celebrated general. He had been kicked out of commission when he had tried to turn his battalion into Satan's bodyguard troupe. Satan had not appreciated being followed around and killed half of his battalion. Darking was placed in a mental ward in the farthest reaches of Hell.

"Darking… this isn't your place. Satan wouldn't wan-"

"Satan wants his will to be done! I shall make that happen! I am his most trustworthy servant! Only I can know what he wants!" Raglaw was flabbergasted. This was what millennia of servitude could do to a man. It could make you think you were born to die for Satan. It could drive you to the brink of insanity.

Raglaw didn't want that.

The major sighed and called out to the guards that were undeniably still outside of the door, waiting for trouble. When called, they walked in the door and seized Darking. They looked at Raglaw expectantly.

"Take him back to the mental wing. Make sure he stays there." Major Raglaw turned away from the door where Darking was dragged out, laughing the entire way. He knew he should have just killed the fallen general. Knew he should have ordered his death from the start. But something stopped him. He gazed at the band on his arm that marked him as an officer of the Devil. Suddenly, the small leather band weighed a thousand pounds.

…

"2D… mmph." The singer casually silenced her mouth by placing his own over it. She grinned and pulled him closer by his shoulders, loving the feeling of the sturdy sinew under her hands. His hands held himself over her as they sprawled on the tiny sofa in the living room. The TV was on but no one felt the need to watch it. After the four had reached the house, Murdoc decided it might as well be time to find something to shrink the massive drummer. Russel was waiting on the beach while Murdoc stirred up some mystery potion on a fire nearby. 2D and Noodle had opted to go inside, out of the sun. Russel had protested at first, given the two's new relationship, but shut his mouth quickly at the look Noodle had given him. Now the singer and guitarist had abandoned their previous intentions to watch a movie and settled for making out on the sofa. Noodle reached down and fiddled with the singer's belt buckle, causing him to chuckle. 2D pulled away and sat next to her, Noodle's mouth pulled into a pout.

"I fink we've tried Russ's nerves enuff fo' one day. The last fing I need is fo' someone to walk in and see yew awl spread out on the floor." Noodle raised her eyebrows and scowled slightly.

"You'd really just do me on the floor?" The singer raised an eyebrow suggestively and half-smiled.

"Dawlin', I'm just not sure we'd make it to the bedroom." Noodle flushed. She hated when he said things like that to her in such a casual manner. It made her want to drag him to her room and not come out for days…

2D leaned back against the sofa with a sigh. Noodle had never felt so content. The voices were gone, she no longer feel the pressing guilt whenever she looked at 2D, and now she didn't even have to hide her relationship from the rest of her family.

Speaking of her family, Murdoc snapped the door open and strutted in, whistling for once instead of cursing. He mimed gagging when he spied the couple on the couch but walked by, doing his best to ignore their interlocked hands. He walked over to the cupboards and rooted around in his liquor cabinet. Noodle turned and saw him.

"Murdoc-san! Did you find a way to shrink Russel-sama?" Murdoc looked around at her.

"Eh? Yeah, he's alright now, doll. He's back to his normal Lard-sy self… 'ave you seen me tequila? I can't find any and I'm dyin' fer a drink." 2D whipped his head to look at her in a panic. Noodle patted his arm and mouthed soothing words to him. Casually, she nudged a bottle under the couch. The alcohol was what made them so willing to forget the movie in the first place. Well, that and the fact that neither could keep their hands off the other.

"No, I haven't. Maybe you took it to your room?" Murdoc muttered to himself for a moment and nodded.

"Yeah, maybe so, doll. You need anything from in here while I'm over here?" Noodle shook her head and the bassist went off to the lift, patting her head as he passed. When he had left the room, 2D heaved a sigh again.

"Yew didn't tell me we'd gone an' stolen Muds's tequila."

"Whose did you think it was?" 2D shrugged and smiled at her. Noodle felt like his dark eyes were swallowing her whole. Impulsively, she reached up and brushed his hair away from his face. His breath caught when she touched his face.

"Noodle, I know I said it befo'… but I just wonted yew to know tha' I really do love yew." Noodle smiled.

"I know… and I love you too." The singer grinned and leaned forward to press his lips against hers. Noodle reached around his neck and held him there. He grunted when she reached for his belt buckle again, managing to slip the end out of a loop. He had to pull away to glare teasingly at her.

"Yew're kinda naughty 'is morning, aren' yew?" Noodle grinned at him.

"What are you going to do about it?"

"Oh, I'm gonna make yew behave!" He leapt on her and pushed her into the sofa, making her giggle in delight. He attacked her lips with a ferocity Noodle hadn't known the singer possessed. Their kisses grew more and more frantic and their hands moved faster until Noodle's shirt was halfway off and 2D's was on the floor. She looked up and saw his eyes were hazy and unfocused. She stopped responding and slowly, he did too. His eyes cleared and he looked more coherent when he looked down in confusion.

"We should uh… prolly stop, yeah?" Noodle let her gaze travel down the length of his body and back up again with a suggestive smile and nodded.

"Russel is able to walk in the door now." He laughed and pushed off her again. He pulled his shirt over his blue head.

"Awl I'm sayin' is 'at yew started it 'is time." Noodle rolled her eyes and straightened out her shirt. She snapped the telly off and stood, pulling 2D to his feet as well.

"There must be something we can do besides devouring each other like wild animals." He raised an eyebrow in a saucy manner, making her blush again. Suddenly, he got an idea.

"Ey, didn' yew say yew 'aven' 'eard Plastic Beach yet?" Noodle nodded. She had had the CD in her possession for over a week now and she hadn't listened to it. She was rather disappointed in herself. "Wull, come on then!" He more or less dragged the guitarist to the lift and punched the button for his bedroom. When they arrived, 2D dropped her hand and walked over to the wall that held his enormous music collection. He pulled a copy of Plastic Beach down and tore off the plastic. His copy hadn't been listened to either, what did he care about listening to it? He_ wrote_ most of the songs. He placed the disc in his stereo and stepped back. Noodle had taken a seat on his yet unmade bed and crossed her legs neatly beneath her. He handed her the case and instructed her to pick a song to listen to first. She closed her eyes and pointed to a track. 2D hit the button for the corresponding song. As she listened, Noodle's smile stretched into a grin.

"Fig'ahd yew'd start wiv 'is one." Melancholy Hill played. Noodle heard the sweet melodies twist through the simple keyboard parts and intertwine with the vocals. She leaned back on her hands and bobbed her head to the beat. 2D sat beside her and hummed softly in her ear.

"I like this song."

"Mmm. Me too, love. Me too. Ih's abou' yew yeh know." Noodle looked around in surprise.

"Really?" He looked down at her and nodded with a small smile on his lips. He joined in with the song right when the lyrics hit,

"Cos you are my medicine when you're close to me, when you're close to me." Noodle smiled.

"Oh yes, I forgot you were the new poster boy for drug rehab." 2D chuckled behind her, she could feel it rumble through his chest.

"Don' be bashin' on me drug 'abits when I 'aven' seen yew eat a bite since 'is morning. Seriously, love. Dun' yeh get 'ungry?" Noodle shrugged.

"Meh. If its not too bizarre, I just kind of forget to eat sometimes." 2D shook his head in amused bewilderment. How he ended up with this strange, lovely creature he would never know. Noodle started tracing patterns on his knee again. He shuddered and spoke in a shaky voice.

"I wish yew wouldn' do tha' when I'm tryin' to be good and _not_ pin yew to me bed." Noodle laughed.

"And here I thought I was the only one who couldn't control their hormones. I've been trying to squash the urge to take you hostage in my bedroom." He laughed.

"Take me hostage? Oh Noodle, please don' try to take advantage of me! Please don' take me and have yeh'r wicked way wiv me poor old soul." The singer threw his arm over his head in a dramatic way and flopped backwards onto the bed. Noodle smiled. She couldn't get over the casual way they threw around how desperately they wanted the other. It seemed like they had been together for months rather than just a day. But this was how it always was, wasn't it? 2D had always fit so perfectly in her life that following a natural progression of emotion made no difference to either of them. Noodle turned and placed her arms on either side of him, caging the singer underneath her.

"You'd better watch out, old man, I'm a lot stronger than I look."

"I know, I fink yew put a coupla bruises on me shoulder where yew 'ad me last night." Noodle blushed when 2D pulled the collar of his t-shirt away from his neck and exposed the fingerprint-shaped marks on his pale skin. She placed her fingers lightly on the bruises and leaned forward slightly. Their noses almost touched. She squeezed very gently and 2D groaned softly, letting his eyes close and his head fall back. Noodle was fascinated by his reaction.

"Does it hurt?" The singer shook his head slowly. He lazily opened his eyes again.

"Doesn' 'urt a bit, love." Noodle relished the warmth of his skin against her hand. It had been a long time since she had been so close to someone without them trying to hurt her. Suddenly, the clanging of the descending lift roused the lovers out of their haze. They stood expectantly when the doors slid open. Murdoc stood panting and clutching the doorframe.

"Murdoc? What's wrong?" Noodle said tentatively, reaching for him. He waved her off and struggled to catch his breath.

"We- we got a p-problem up top, doll. He- they- he's come for you."

**What if I just held the next chapter hostage until I got some reviews? Then what would you do? … yeah, you and I both know I couldn't do that… sad. Review!**


	12. All My Trials

**Readers beware! This chapter is a short interlude unto the inner workings of the Master Plan. My Master Plan, that is. It's not required per se for comprehension's sake, but it's still a part of the story. **

**Oh, Major Raglaw. To be honest, I never intended to create him. He sort of strolled into my head and I liked him. I admire his spirit and his general character as well as his strict moral compass. This is part of his story, hope you like it!**

Major Raglaw walked quickly down the main hallway to the foyer. He had to leave this place. Guards looked at him curiously as he made for the door. Raglaw closed his eyes and pitied the fools who thought they were doing something worthwhile down here. He didn't know where to go or how to proceed from here. If he stayed, he would slowly lose his mind. He would be reduced to a blathering idiot in a mental ward with only dim memories to keep him company for eternity. He had to get out… but how? He passed one of the palace servants and paused with his hand on the door when the servant girl addressed him. Raglaw supposed she was pretty, her face was so hidden by makeup he couldn't quite tell.

"Sir, do you know if Master has yet found the girl's hideout? It's just been all the talk of the kitchen staff." She fluttered her lashes for effect and Raglaw resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

"I am not authorized to give you that information." He left the girl with an annoyed expression and walked out the door.

The girl. Raglaw had forgotten about the poor girl Satan was about to unleash his fury on. He looked upwards. If Satan had gone topside himself, he probably fancied he had a good chance of bringing the girl back himself. Unexplainably, Raglaw felt a surge of rage. How dare he destroy another life? Raglaw wasn't quite sure how he had ended up here. He had always figured he must have screwed up terribly in his earthly life to have to endure this literal hellhole. He had had to endure the endless years of corrupting people on Earth and turning them for Satan's use. It made him sick to imagine the poor girl being pulled away from her family at the whim of the madman running the underworld. Raglaw clenched his fist, he wanted so badly to be be able to do something about it. His anger was irrational and out of character for him.

Madmen loved company, it seemed. Raglaw looked up and finally realized where he was. His feet hadn't carried him to the door as he had planned, he was standing in front of the door to Satan's main office. The door stood halfway ajar. Raglaw looked from one side of the hallway to the other.

He was about to commit treasonous acts. Should he be caught, he would pay dearly for it.

He shook his head once and stepped in. Inside, papers were neatly stacked ten feet high on the back wall. A desk sat prominently in the center of the room with an elaborate, high backed, ox blood chair behind it. The walls were paneled in a dark wood and dim lights casually gave the room a dingy glow. Raglaw sighed at the theatricalness of it all and looked around for… what? What could he possibly hope to find that would affect anything? He started with the topmost papers against the wall. Tax documents from thirty years ago, unpaid dry cleaning bills, Raglaw shook his head. Why anyone ever bothered to send Satan a bill, he would never know. There was absolutely nothing here to help him in any way. Suddenly, a familiar voice rang out, scaring the major half to… never mind.

"Major Raglaw."

"S-sir?" Did Satan somehow know where Raglaw was and what he was planning?

"Tell me again the exact coordinates to this island the girl is supposedly on."

"Are you close, sir?"

"I think so. I have a direct visual on the shore, it shouldn't be too hard to gain access from the sea. I don't see her yet, but I see the drummer… my, he's shrunk… anyway, I just want to confirm." Raglaw told him the coordinates once again, to which Satan grunted in approval.

"How much longer can you stay above ground, sir?" A sigh was heard on the other side.

"Not much longer, Raglaw. To be frank, I'm quite surprised that… He hasn't discovered my position. I would thank my lucky stars, but I'm not sure I have any anymore." Satan allowed himself a chuckle before getting back to business.

"Anything else I should know, Raglaw?"

"No, sir."

"Very well. I shall be back within the hour if all goes according to plan."

"Yes, sir. Goodbye, sir." The line disconnected. Raglaw felt faint. He was so close to completing his mission. Was there nothing to be done to stop him? It seemed the fates were against him, there was absolutely nothing in this place that could even put a brief hesitation to Satan's plan. His eyes roamed aimlessly around the office, feeling disgust for himself and his situation. He was a failure. He was one of the finest majors in the force and he couldn't even slow the Devil up a bit. Raglaw's eyes fell on a gleaming white telephone places awkwardly behind a pile of books. Unsure as to why he did, Ragaw slowly approached it and stared at it.

It seemed to be made of porcelain. The handle was smooth and white, it looked untouched. Raglaw reached out for it, drawn in by it's pearly exterior. The receiver was cool to the touch but thrummed with energy. He put the receiver to his ear, still unsure as to why. A cool female voice spoke on the other line.

"Hello, this is the office of- oh, it's you." Raglaw didn't know who he was supposed to be. Raglaw guessed the woman thought he was Satan. "Do you want me to get him?" By the way she said "Him" Raglaw guessed this "Him" wasn't just anyone. It was "Him" with a capital H. He drew in a shaky breath. What was he supposed to say? Was he even allowed to talk to Him? Why did Satan even have this telephone?

"I just need to tell someone… something. Please, anyone who will listen who can do anything." The woman paused and spoke again, her words soothing.

"This is Major Raglaw isn't it? He's been expecting your call for a while. Please, stay on the line with my friend here while I find the One you're looking for." The woman got off the line and was replaced by another, more familiar voice.

"James?" Raglaw released a gust of breath he hadn't known he'd been holding.

"Karen." He hadn't spoken to his wife in over three hundred years. "Are you… did you- you're dead, aren't you?"

"Maybe on Earth I am. I passed away a few months after you were… taken. It's so beautiful here though, James. I wish you could see it."

"I don't think I ever will, Karen. Enjoy it for the both of us."

"You've been so brave, sweetie. Just be brave for a bit longer."

"I'm going to die too, aren't I? Satan's going to kill me when he finds out. He's going to send me on." Raglaw's voice was void of emotion. He knew what was coming, he saw it as inevitable.

"Think of that girl though, James. She would thank you." Raglaw was startled at this.

"How much do you know of what I'm doing here?"

"I am allowed to check up on you from time to time. You make me so proud." Raglaw didn't know what to say. His heart, if it was still beating, felt like it had swelled in pride.

"Babe, how are you… really?" Karen was silent for a short time.

"I miss you terribly," she whispered, "It's nice here, but you're not here."His throat felt swollen shut. He started a few sentences before he actually got one to cooperate with his mouth.

"It's been hell here without you."

"Soon, my dear." Raglaw didn't know what she meant by that, but felt comforted all the same. A new voice sounded on the line. "Oh! James, dear… I have to go, but I think you'll want to talk to someone else. Goodbye…" Raglaw pleaded with her to stay but she was already gone. The new voice spoke again. Raglaw felt the life drain from his face and reappear as astonishment and awe. Quickly, Raglaw told the new voice everything.

**Reviews? Please?**


	13. War Zone

**Oh boy, folks. Here it is. The penultimate chapter! And for you word nerds, that's just fancy talk for "second to last". Here's hoping…**

**Disclaimer: **

Noodle felt her eyes go wide. 2D glanced around, confused.

"Oo's come fer yew, Noodle-love?" Noodle couldn't answer. 2D turned to Murdoc. The bassist was having a silent conversation with Noodle and didn't answer either. Murdoc was trying to assess how Noodle was handling the news and Noodle was trying very hard to hide her fear and anger. She glanced up at him and tried to steel her features, trying to appear in control and calm.

"Oi! Wos goin' on, 'ere? Oo's come fer Noodle?" Noodle turned to the singer. Murdoc rolled his eyes and grabbed Noodle's wrist, who in turn, grabbed 2D.

"We gotta find someplace for yeh to hide, doll. We'll hide yeh in me secret room. He won't find yeh there." Noodle felt in a trance. Satan was here? On the island? How did he find her? What would he want? Noodle gritted her teeth, completely ignoring the babbling on her bandmates. How dare Satan follow her to ruin her life again! She had fulfilled the deal, there was no reason for her to stay in Hell. Noodle had to confront Satan. She had to at least negotiate her release. But Murdoc, Russel, and 2D would die before they let her do this on her own. Her mind ran through several possible solutions before she decided on one. As soon as the lift hit the study, Murdoc began walking out with 2D close behind. The singer still had a grip on her wrist. Noodle jerked her arm, breaking the hold and pushed the two forward into the room. She then spun and hit the door close button with her fist, watching her two friends spin and stare in shock as the doors closed. She heard a brief banging on the closed doors before she pressed the button for the main entrance. Noodle felt jittery on the way down. 2D must be furious with her for leaving him, but she couldn't risk him getting hurt. The lift situation would at least give her some time. When the lift landed on the main floor, Noodle darted out of the doors and out onto the metal porch. The beach was a wreck. Trash was blowing everywhere and the sky had turned a terrible shade of gray. Lightning struck from odd angles and a swirling cloud seemed to emanate from the far side of the shore. Noodle figured it was her best bet and took off running again. The sky was stormy and rain started falling. Noodle squinted to look up to try and see where the strange weather was coming from, it hadn't rained here since she had been on the island and according to 2D, the weather didn't change much. Noodle could dimly see a figure in the middle of the vortex. She skidded to a stop on top of Melancholy Hill. It overlooked the small peninsula that the vortex centered around. The figure in the vortex stood twenty feet tall and was shrouded in mist and darkness. Noodle felt a stab of anger at the figure. How dare he intrude on her life?

"Ok Noodle… you just have to make him see you." She started off again, jogging down the hillside and starting towards the peninsula. "Just let him see you and- OOF!" A flash of blue later and Noodle was tackled to the ground. She was flat on her back and looking up into the falling rain. 2D's angry features stared down at her with a fire burning unmistakably in his dark eyes. His blue hair fell around his face in a damp azure curtain.

"Love, yew can' jist go runnin' off like 'at! We're tryin' teh protect yew!" Noodle pushed against his hold and managed to sit up. 2D still hovered over and refused to let her move.

"I'm trying to protect YOU. Get off and let me go, 2D!" The singer's eyes narrowed.

"I awready lost yew once, why do yew wanna make me live 'at again?"

"It's me he wants, not you!" Noodle gave a shove and stood up. She only came up to about his shoulders but she glared at him.

"Yew're gonna be killed, Noodle! And for wot? Wot do yew possibly 'ave teh gain by doin' 'is?"

"He'll leave you the fuck alone!"

"Wull, maybe I don't want to be left alone if it means yew won' be 'ere!" Noodle inhaled sharply and blew up in his face.

"You think I want to see you get hurt? You think I want to see you get cut up and bruised like I was? It's different for you because you didn't have to see him hit me! Do you honestly think I'd be able to sit quietly while he was trying to hurt you in any way?" 2D opened his mouth to argue but Russel and Murdoc came trotting up the hill as well. Murdoc opened his mouth.

"What was that, girly? You went and bloody shoved us-"

"SHUT UP!" The couple both yelled at the bassist, robbing him of a response. He deflated and closed his mouth dumbly. They turned back to each other.

"That's fine and dandy, love. But yew aren' turning yehself in an' tha's final." He crossed his arms like he had won.

"That's final? That's FINAL? What are you going on about?" She grabbed the singer by his collar and pulled him down to her level. Murdoc and Russel winced, 2D had taken a step too far, even he was beginning to realize. "I can do whatever the hell I want, understand? And this is for your own good, so don't presume to tell me-"

A voice rang through the air, making the men shiver in fear and Noodle drop to her knees in agony. The keening sound was back, but there was no internal voice to accompany it. Only the booming noise that shot shivers down her spine. It seemed like Noodle was the only one who heard the high pitched noise along with the voice.

"Bring her to me and I will spare your lives." The deep voice rang out to the farthest reaches of the horizon. All four glanced uneasily to the vortex where the figure had materialized and was standing in front of the mist. 2D took hold of Noodle's wrist again and tried to pull her towards the house. Noodle stood firm.

"Noodle-love, we have to move! 'e knows we're 'ere and he's gonna get angry." As if to embellish his statement, a fireball was hurled at the hill, sending ashes and dirt everywhere.

"Well, only because you asked so nicely." Noodle gripped 2D's arm and dragged him away. The four zipped along the beach, hopping every now and then to avoid fireballs and flying debris. Russel ducked as a hunk of the island was caught up in the windstorm and tossed carelessly. Murdoc swore violently as his trouser got caught on a spiked piece of the ground, causing him to stumble. Russel reached back and grabbed his arm, hauling him up and hustling him along. When they got near the house,

Murdoc skidded to a stop outside of his garage. He punched the code in the door and threw it open. The three remaining looked at each other, questioning his sanity at a time like this. Murdoc soon emerged with something… or someone under his arm. He ran to the edge of the pavement behind the house and stood the thing up on its own. He flipped a switch and muttered under breath.

"C'mon c'mon c'mon- YEAH! Go! Kill! Fetch! Whatever the bloody hell you want, yeh piece ah tin!" Murdoc scampered back and past the trio as Noodle stopped to stare at the creature. The cyborg she recognized from the album. It looked very much like her except for the fact that it sported a military-like uniform and wielded a dangerous-looking gun. She gasped as it booted up and turned slowly, eyes a terrifying shade of yellow. It raised its gun to point at her head, Noodle couldn't move. From its mouth came a stream of unintelligible garble. Noodle detected a definite smirk on the cyborg's face while it turned and took aim at the lighthouse near the swirling figure. A missile launched at the lighthouse, sending it toppling onto the figure. Noodle felt herself get dragged away from the scene. She looked back just in time to see the figure throw the rubble off and send a supercharged ball of flames at the cyborg's head. She looked around to see Murdoc dragging her by her good wrist.

"Knew that piece ah scrap metal would come in handy." She heard the bassist mutter to himself.

The four took shelter behind the record shack. Russel peered out from behind the shack. He saw as the tree he had slept under when he was huge was set smoldering by one of Satan's blasts.

"Man, he's blowin' holes everywhere. We gotta do something." Murdoc peered around the other side and hastily withdrew his head when a fireball came whizzing close.

"Lards, we can't go anywhere. Bastard's got us cornered- CHRIST!" A piece of what looked like a bowling ball was hurled at his head next. The wind was howling and rain was falling. It looked like a scene from a war movie. Noodle looked around. This was how it was going to end. Her family was fighting to protect her and she was powerless to help. Satan was destroying their island in his mad attempt to capture her. She looked at each of her bandmates. Murdoc, shirtless as usual, clutching the side of the record shack and occasionally dodging objects thrown at him. His hair stuck to his forehead because of the rain. Russel, her father and protector, trying to shield her from the massive explosions that weren't dampened by even the rain. And 2D… where was he? Noodle glanced around their impromptu shelter. He wasn't anywhere. She took a breath and looked around the record shack in the direction of the figure she knew to be Satan. She gasped, in front of her was the retreating figure of her dear singer, walking slowly to where Satan stood. Noodle didn't think twice, didn't hesitate, she just darted around the corner and launched herself at 2D. Murdoc turned around just in time to see a streak of purple and make a sluggish grasp at her collar.

"Noodle!"

Noodle ignored the calls behind her and kept running. 2D had had a head start and was standing very near the Devil, too close for Noodle's comfort. Satan smiled down at the singer with too many pointed teeth to be genuine.

"Come to die, boy?" Noodle watched in slow motion as 2D looked up into Satan's face through the pouring rain. Noodle thought he had never looked more like an angel than when he stood, proudly confronting the Devil himself. The flames burning around him gave his face a strange glow. Noodle felt her heart lurch and her voice grow hoarse with screaming as 2D whispered and her worst fears were realized.

"Take me in her place." Satan grinned wider and slowly looked up to see Noodle throwing herself on the ground at his feet. 2D looked a bit shocked to see her.

"Don't you dare! Take me! It's me you want, right?" Satan cocked his head and looked curiously at her. Raising an eyebrow at her, he sent a wall of energy towards the singer, sending him reeling back and clutching his head in pain. He grinned down at her sadistically.

"Noodle, dear. It's lovely to see you again. How've you been?" Noodle snarled. All she registered was the impulsive urge to cause this terrible creature pain and she was off, running at Satan with her teeth and fists bared. In her anger, she was blind. She saw nothing but a blind rage that caused her to reach out and hit anything she came in contact with as hard as possible. Satan looked down at her display and sighed. Mortals, he decided, were far too moody for their own good. To get her attention, he lightly nudged her away. She leapt on him again. Annoyance rising, he nudged her harder. She didn't seem to notice. Flaring, he reached down and struck her. Noodle felt herself being tossed away, vision hazy. 2D watched in horror from the ground as she hit the ground hard.

"Noodle!" Russel arrived then, seeing the scene from afar. He held the singer back as he cried out in fury and agony. He struggled against Russel's arms and tried to get to Satan.

"YEW FUCKIN' TOSSER! YEW BLASTED ARSEHOLE! COME DOWN 'ERE AN' FACE ME!" Murdoc tried to clamp his hand over the enraged singer's mouth to prevent him from getting himself in more trouble. Satan looked around indifferently, and then… he was gone.

The large explosion roused Noodle. She looked up at the gray sky and the rain falling down on her. She dimly registered 2D yelling at someone, but she wasn't sure who. She turned her head to try and see. All she could make out was the bright blue of his hair as he huddled on the ground. Suddenly, he looked over and saw her staring at him. He scrambled up and tripped off his feet several times on his way to her. Russel and Murdoc weren't far behind. She felt him scoop her hand in his and hold it to his face, feeling for her pulse. His dark eyes caught hers.

"Noodle? Noodle-love, how're yew feelin'?" Murdoc smacked him around the head for asking such a stupid question. At least they all now had a brief idea who it was that gave Noodle such a bad shiner. Noodle opened her mouth to answer, but found she couldn't. Her voice wouldn't cooperate with her thoughts. She tried looking into his eyes to let him know she was alright for now, but her vision was slowly clouding over and going black around the edges. Not alright, she thought.

"Don't yew dare leave me, love. I ain't losin' yew a second time." He whispered to her. Russel crouched next to her and brushed her hair back from her face. Murdoc looked unsure of what to do wit himself and stood awkwardly behind the drummer, tears rolling unchecked down his green skin. Noodle looked around herself once and focused on the gray sky that was starting to clear. She felt her eyes roll backwards as 2D's screams started again.

…

Raglaw watched in satisfaction as his former employer was forcibly yanked and sent back to the underworld. He knew Satan would be angry when he came to. He would be furious when he found out someone had gone to a higher authority. And absolutely murderous when he discovered it was his highest ranking officer who turned him in. He felt a stab of guilt for the girl, she wasn't supposed to be hurt. Raglaw felt a hand intertwine with his. He looked up and saw the lovely face of his wife.

"He's proud. You've been so brave." He smiled and looked back to the scene. He was a bit nervous at beginning his new life, but he was overjoyed to see his love.

"Show me around?" She smiled.

"Of course." They walked on, hand in hand.

**Seriously, the lack of reviews is making me panic slightly. Please… for the love of everything that is good… please, please, please, please review or comment or nag or rage or whatever! Just please give me some feedback here!**


	14. Waking Up

**Hello, my faithful readers! I'd just like to take a moment to thank all of you. Thanks to everyone who reviewed (shout out to Nine Tails Beyond and doitallandthensome) all of you were great at beating away the writer's block. Here's the final chapter! Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: BTW, this sort of feels like my child has grown up :(**

Noodle was flying again. The clouds seemed brighter and the sky looked bluer. She didn't want to look down, she didn't want to see the ground rushing up to meet her like it had those weeks ago in her cell. Noodle felt alone and yet… serene. There was no one here to hurt her or the ones she loved. She didn't feel anything clawing at her consciousness. She felt good.

Noodle wondered how long it would last. She didn't really want to stay here forever, she had the dim feeling that there was somewhere else she should be. Somewhere with people she knew. Noodle's head started feeling fuzzy and she stopped thinking. The sun was streaming pleasantly on her face. She reached up and ran her fingers down her cheek. She couldn't feel the slight pain that had accompanied this gesture when she had had her bruise. It had either healed… or it was gone. There was no reflective surface for her to be certain. Was she dead? Noodle felt rather bubbly inside. She felt as if she could stay here and float and never have to worry about falling.

The blue of the sky was enrapturing. It was such a deep blue, it looked like someone had poured out a jar of solid silk. It reminded her of 2D's hair.

2D.

As if to underline her thought, his voice suddenly came ringing throughout the skies.

"Noodle, yew awright, darlin'?" She looked wildly around her to find the source of the voice. The voice started humming and Noodle smiled. She recognized the tune to be On Melancholy Hill. The song 2D had written about her. She called out for him, though she wasn't entirely sure he would be able to hear her.

"Toochi! Where are you?"

"Noodle, love. Yew gotta wake up now, yew gotta eat, yeh skinny li'l fing. Russ'll 'ave me 'ead if yew lose any more weight." Noodle thought that was a strange thing to say to someone, dead or not. She chanced a look below and was startled to see herself. This was not an outside view like being possessed had been, but more of a bird's view. Her body looked quite lifeless and battered as it laid on the singer's bed. She grimaced as she took in the new bruise that marked her right cheek. This one didn't look very bad though and would probably heal very soon. Noodle was hard-pressed to recognize anything about the body. She couldn't find herself in the figure's compose expression. A new voice called her attention to above her again.

"Noodle, you have a choice… stay with your family… or go on." Noodle didn't quite recognize this voice. It held the authority of a general or king yet had the caring tenderness of a grandfather. She looked back down at the scene.

"When you say 'on'…" The voice chuckled.

"Not the 'on' you're thinking of. 'On' as in 'on to a better place'." Noodle had feared being sent back to Hell or on to that purgatory. Now that she was faced with the chance to move forward, how could she proceed. The man below her stroked the hair away from the figure's body. Noodle shuddered as she felt the faint sensation on her own forehead. She saw the door open and two more people enter. One was distinctly green while the other was rather large. How could she leave the people she cared for most in the world? And by some lucky accident, they ends up caring for her as well. Her sky started dissolving slowly. Noodle was not afraid, she barely noticed.

"I… don't think I'm ready to decide yet." The voice did not answer but the overhead scene was gone. Noodle found hereof opening her eyes groggily and suddenly feeling the full weight of the bruise on her cheek. She saw 2D's face brighten and Russel crack a smile. Murdoc even looked slightly relieved, even if he tried to hide it.

Noodle pushed up and sat underneath the thin blanket. She held her head as a headache threatened the edges of her consciousness.

"Where are we?" 2D smiled at her.

"Yeh're in me room, darlin'. 'ad to get yew off the beach, yeah?" A thought blatantly occurred to Noodle, nearly pulling her off the bed.

"Where's Satan? Is he still here?" A green-skinned hand firmly pushed her shoulder down onto the bed.

"Relax, doll. Bugger's gone. Somehow he jist… vanished. Blew up in a puff o' smoke." Noodle sat back. Russel was staring at her. She tilted her head questioningly at him, and he burst into tears, startling Noodle.

"I- I- I thought you was dead, baby girl. You weren't movin' and- and-" Murdoc rolled his eyes. 2D just smiled understandingly at the drummer. The singer rooted around in his pocket and pulled out an empty glass phial.

"Turns out that li'l potion that was meant fer me worked to get yeh'r 'eartbeat back up to speed. Good finking, keeping' ih in yeh'r pocket." Russel glared at 2D.

"You reached in her pocket?" 2D blushed, causing Russel to inflate with anger. Murdoc opened his mouth, cutting the drummer off.

"Well, th' important thing is that yeh're awake now, doll. Good teh see yeh're… nice to know yeh're ok." He shuffled his feet and cut off awkwardly. Noodle grinned.

"Nice to see you too, Murdoc." He mouth twisted up in a grimace of a smile and went to shuffle out the door.

"Right, well… I'm off fer a cold one, then. I can't be hanging round with you lot, can I?" Murdoc tossed the casual put down over his shoulder as the door swung shut behind him. Noodle looked at 2D, he was kneeling by the side of the bed, tracing patterns on the bedspread. She glanced pointedly at Russel and cleared her throat. He jumped up and backed out of the room.

"Feel better, baby-girl." The singer and guitarist were left alone. Silence filled the room for a moment.

"Why did you go out to face him alone?" 2D didn't look up and Noodle didn't bother catching his eye. They both avoided the other's gaze.

"Becos… becos I didn't fink yew'd follow."

"Why wouldn't you think I'd go after you?"

"Why _did _yew come after me? I wos tryin' teh keep yew safe!"

"Why did I- because I love you… and you were being an idiot!" 2D grinned slightly and looked at her. He reached up and took her face in his hand and stroked the new bruise.

"Tha's my fault." He whispered quietly to himself, so quietly that Noodle barely heard it though he was several inches from her. She reached up and took his hand and trapped it between her own.

"No it's not. And if you start thinking that, you will never forgive yourself, Toochi." He exhaled loudly and searched her face for a long moment.

"Are yew frew wiff the demons and devils and whotnot? Ih's gettin' pretty spooky round 'ere." He punctuated his teasing comment with a silly grin. Noodle smiled and rolled her eyes. She scooted over and tugged his arm to get him to climb into bed with her. They both settled on their sides, content to just lie there with the other. She yawned involuntarily and 2D pulled the covers over her form. She cuddled up to the singer and tucked her head under his chin, causing him to wrap his arm around her back. Noodle pressed a kiss to his collarbone and whispered into his t-shirt.

"Thank you for saving me, Toochi."

And this time, 2D knew exactly what she was thanking him for.

…

Satan sat slumped in his favorite chair. He couldn't find the energy to move, let alone yell at someone else about not being able to move. Those damned… children was what they were, those children had beaten him. Satan felt a childish urge to call them out for "tattling" to… Him. Satan sighed. It must have been the insolent children who told, no one under his direct command would have to guts to pull that sort of tomfoolery on him. He gazed around his office. He was trapped here for the time being. He pathetically clenched his ruined fist. When he got his claws around whoever had sent him home… he smirked at the cliche of there being Hell to pay. While gazing rather catatonically around, his eyes landed on the telephone. Pearly white, it stood in a dramatic contrast to the rest of the room. More than usual in fact. Satan usually hid the blazing phone behind a stack of books so he didn't have to be constantly reminded of his direct contact with the Man Upstairs. But, it was out. Someone had touched it. Using the very last vestiges of strength, he pulled his wheelie chair to the phone. Ashy fingerprints marred the surface, indicating its recent use. A small object laid by the side of the phone. Satan picked it up, it appeared to be a leather band of some kind. His eyes widened.

This was the mark of his commanding officers. His fist closed on the small band, reducing it to ash and flames.

He knew who turned him in… he knew exactly who it was. Satan's lips curled up in a smirk.

Someday.

**__I love you all! Thanks for reading!**


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